The Devil's Flower
by Argentum Famulus
Summary: When she was born, her heart was weak and failing. She was on the verge of death. In desperation, her mother clutched at straws and had her father summon a high-ranking demon with great magical power. A chance at life in exchange for her life, that was the condition. "Once a contract has been exchanged, no matter what the reason is, you cannot escape from it." AU, no OC.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

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><p><em>This is a story that happened a long time ago, about one girl and her adventure-filled life. It takes place in the hot Arabian regions of sand dunes, camels, tropics, and – most importantly – love...<em>

A simple yet intricate melody rang through the busy air of the village, followed by the jingles of many tiny bells in the dry, desert wind. The extraordinary sounds caught the attention of the people bustling about and people slowly stopped in their tracks, dropping their tasks for a moment's time. It was hard not to have their attention diverted by such a rare and mesmerizing spectacle.

"Are they travelling performers?"

"Seems likely," one woman murmured in awe. "I've never seen them around here before."

"What a beautiful looking dancer."

"The lute player is quite handsome, as well. They seem exotic, I doubt they could be natives."

"Perhaps gypsies."

Throngs of people gathered about the scene: a beautiful dancer girl and her handsome companion. It was an odd sight, one which they did not get the chance to witness everyday. It was hard to keep their eyes from watching so intently when they all had business to attend to; the lull of the gentle lute, as they watched the girl twirl about, was captivating and rich in contrast to the dull lives of the villagers.

_Here, you will find the story of your not-so-typical girl. A young girl named Amu Hinamori._

They marvelled at her glamorous movements. They were bewitched by the swish of her foreign rosy hair, whilst the musician enchanted them with his own strange navy locks and enrapturing tune. The duo were mysterious and unheard of in their parts, it was a wonder who they were; where they could have come from.

"That marking on her chest is bizarre."

"Come to think of it, I have never seen such tattoos on anyone. It's quite dazzling, really." Another odd sight for them to gaze upon...

_Why was she not-so-typical, you may ask? Because she had a magnificent yet mystical flower blooming on her chest. To those who had no knowledge, it was just a striking mark on the stunning girl; but for others, who were more familiar about such a legend, knew that it was the mark of a demon and its borrowed heart..._

"Aye, yer preposterous thinkin' will have ye killed on the spot," a surly old woman spat, grumbling as she picked up a large basket of herbs and fruits and waddled through the clusters of townsfolk. She pushed her way through the crowd, avoiding the sight of the alien performers. "Ye don't know nothin' 'bout who they are, let 'lone what they come for in our land. Don't any of ya folk have some sense of pres'vation at least for yer young'ns? Can't just trust any sort of folk that come wanderin' inta the town!"

Some of them looked at the old woman sceptically – she always had seemed quite batty to them. Still, she was considered one of the elders in the village and there were a few who saw truth in what she had said. They were squeamish, standing at the edges of the crowd; very much afraid yet very much drawn by their own curiosity.

"It's true, the dancer isn't to be trusted. Don't you know? It's a rumour apparently, but that 'flower' is the mark of having a demon's heart," one man whispered quite audibly for the rest to hear. In an instant, a thick buzz ran amongst the people.

"Nonsense! A _demon's_ heart?" A lady next to the man said with disgust, the man nodded gravely.

"Yes. Such people trade their hearts with the demon, just so they can lengthen their life. It's revolting," the man seethed. "However, that is the signatures of those cursed by one, carved into their skin right over their heart." The new drone of voices made the old woman look back once more, her eyes narrowed, the wrinkles around them furrowing. She watched the crowd thin around the dancer.

"Aye, it's a phenomenon that ye rarely hear of. Only the wors' of the wors' – those folk of grime, filth and sorcery – would sell their souls for the verve of breath. There's no trustin' those that go far as tradin' their souls with the devil jus' 'cause they can't accept it when their time comes!" The people watched her shuffle away with peculiar quiet but as her retreating back disappeared around the corner, voices started up again.

_So you see, dear friendly readers, her chest was engraved with a flower mark. Although people of her kind were rare, those with a demon's heart were formally known as "Akuma no Hana": a "Demon's Flower"._

"So that witch worships the devil?"

"Doesn't that mean she has the power to curse us as well?"

"She must have swindled that musician, as well!" Another careened. "If we don't be careful, we'll become bewitched by her, also."

With that, the streak of unpleasant murmurs swept through the crowds of the townsfolk and they hurried away as fast as they could from the dancing girl. Their once mesmerized selves now avoided the girl at all costs, like a disease. Like a plague. Like the people had seen the devil in flesh.

_But those who looked down on those of her type called her an "Akuma no Ko": a "Demon's Child". And thus, our great story and this vast journey will begin…_

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><p><strong>Disclaimer: <strong>All rights to _Shugo Chara_ and its characters go to the wonderful Peach-Pit. The basic plotline comes from the beautiful manga _Hanatsukihime_ which belongs exclusively to Hibiki Wataru – thank you for the inspiration, Wataru-sensei!

**...::::~ ****Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ**** ~::::...**


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

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><p>"It's certainly getting harder to earn money," the girl murmured to herself, sighing jadedly. She fidgeted with the few coins in her hand, running her hands over the dull metals she had managed to scrape together. She barely had enough for a full meal but knew it was pointless to waste time brooding over it. She would have to make the best of what she had.<p>

With keen eyes, she scrutinized all of the fruits that the vendor was selling. Though they were all fresh, she still looked for the freshest. She had to at least get her money's worth. Lips pursed in her concentration, she began to mumble comparisons of the fruits under her breath, ignorant of the looks she had garnered. '_Just buying one fruit for dessert is a serious fight, too. Which one should I choose?_'

Finally, she picked up the best-looking apple in the stand – a bright red apple that was big, ripe, and lustrous looking. It looked like it would be very sweet and juicy treat for the two of them.

"Hey, Akumanoko," someone grunted. She looked to where the voice was, noticing the vendor of the stall standing a little ways from her. "You're going to buy the ones you touched, right?" She stared at the discourteous street vendor and smiled radiantly, not heeding the fact that he referred to her so crudely. He eyed the girl unpleasantly, his eyes wrinkled with suspicion.

"Yes, of course. Please, give me this one, sir."

"Leave the money on the rack over there." He grumbled, turning away from her. She was aware her presence was a strain for him, driving away other customers from buying the fruits from his stall. She turned around to put her money on the rack, her smile slowly fading away. She could hear the whispers all around her clearly and put her money down wordlessly. She wrapped her cloak around her tighter than before, as if shielding herself from the harsh words of the village's people.

She whispered a hasty thanks that went deaf to the man's ears and was about to walk away when the vendor shoved her roughly and she winced from the twinge of pain in her arm.

"Move aside if you're done here! You're disrupting my business!" Unfortunately, she was not as worried about the vendor's business as she was about her stomach. Her attention was focused on what she bought – the apple that was now airborne.

Stumbling, she stretched her arm out to try to catch it, although the attempt looked futile. Just as she expected to collide with the ground, her body came into contact with something else: an arm. Before she knew it, she had been engulfed into the cloak of her saviour. She looked up to the person's face, already knowing who the person was before she looked.

'_Ikuto,_' she thought in relief as she looked up to his face – she noticed that his nimble fingers caught the apple as well. He tucked it into the inner pocket of his cloak and immediately quieted her gratitude to check whether she had been hurt. He ignored her protests, running his fingers over the skin on her arm. It was not tender nor were there any signs of a bruise forming. Still, that did not excuse the man who had tried to hurt her.

"What? Are you a friend of this dirty Akumanoko?" One merchant sneered.

"That's putting it nicely," another crowed. "Looks more like the dirty scum that beds her. How much do you pay her for her services, boy? Is she any good?" Standing behind the rude merchants were a few other men, ready to attack at the two victims. The men spat at their feet and Amu shuffled closer to Ikuto. She fisted her robe in her hand, disregarding the vulgar comments directed at her. There was no chance of her crying because of their words; she was used to such abuse. It was normal. However, that did not make the words hurt any less.

The same could not be said about her companion. While Ikuto remained silent, his eyes darkened forebodingly. He was not one to overlook the harassment.

His face was clouded with fury. He eyed the men in front of him dangerously. From the tips of his silky Persian blue hair down to the soles of his khussa-covered feet, his aura reeked of danger. The dancer knew that the men in front of them were frightened – it was impossible not to be frightened of Ikuto – even as they hesitantly closed around the two. She decided that she would have to intervene before a fight broke out. Right now.

"Enough." Her voice held them in their spots and she stood in front of Ikuto, trying her best to block him from view - easier said then done with his tall frame - yet the attention was still on her. "Please, I apologize for the trouble and inconvenience I gave you all. You don't have to worry anymore because I'll be leaving now. I'm truly sorry for the trouble I caused." She told the fruit vendor earnestly. "Good day to you all."

She forcefully dragged Ikuto away by his sleeve. He stayed silent. He did not put up a fight; letting her pull him away before he lost control of himself and his anger. Behind her, she could hear insults being muttered about her.

"Tch. Good riddance, devil-girl." She knew from the gruff voice, that it was the fruit vendor from earlier and quickened her pace.

Another normal day.

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><p>When she was born, her heart was weak and failing. It was not expected she would live past a few weeks and no matter where her parents turned, there was no one who could help them. Time was running out quickly and as she was on the verge of death, in an act of sheer desperation, her parents clutched at straws. Putting everything they had on the line, they summoned a high-ranking demon with great magical power. There were legends of humans living with the hearts of demons to lengthen their life and with no time to lose, the infant's parents decided they would grab at any chance they could get.<p>

Impossibly enough, the girl could vividly remember her mother's words that night when the demon was beckoned: "_Please, give your heart to my child for a short while. I beg of you._"

The demon agreed to her proposal, however it did not come without a lofty price: "_In exchange, after seventeen years, her body will be mine to consume and I will take back my heart. These are the fixed conditions of agreement as she will be indebted to me for the time I give her. You may agree to this contract or leave it in preparation of her pitiful burial._"

It was a hard decision in which they had little time to ponder over. However reluctant the parents were, to give their daughter a chance at life they ultimately agreed. They knelt before the powerful demon, their own hearts laid out for sacrifice if that was what he wanted, right before his feet. It was a sacrifice for their child that they would have to make. Their tears streaked down hot and fast. Droplets of fell onto her skin.

"_Please,_" the mother pleaded. "_All I want is for her to live, please, let her fulfill a short time to live as a human. To see how beautiful this world can truly be._" They wanted her to taste the crisp air of dawn and to see the radiant painted sky of dusk. She had so much to live for, no matter how short the time. There would be no room for regrets.

"_Since you have agreed, I will do as you wish. Let it be known: no matter how she tries, no matter how she pleads and cries, she will not be able to escape this contract. From this day forth, her body will be under my jurisdiction as my property. Remember the time, humans. Seventeen years._" The two parents expected horror and tragedy; they expected death and pain and suffering.

Thus, her chest was engraved with the seal that indicated that she was and still is the devil's prey. In her chest beat the instrument of her life, given to her by her devil. Time flew by since then, and she was already sixteen. Nearing closer and closer to her time…

"People who do not know about it will obviously say that this mark is pretty," Amu said as she nibbled on a slice of apple. It was a taste she would remember, crisp and sweet. They were back inside of their inn, in the room they had rented for the time being. They had finished dinner. Now, they were having their dessert – the apple that caused so much trouble earlier in the day. "They cannot help it, after all, they think of it as just another tattoo. Anyhow, it is better that way." She said that, however, she couldn't help but feel dismayed by it.

"It cannot be helped. As long as there is one person who knows of its meaning, the rumour will spread like wildfire." Ikuto tuned the strings of his lute, making sure it was working fine for the next time Amu would want to perform. Of course, he did not see why it was necessary. He did not want her to do such labour if the outcome was ill-treatment from stupid and ungrateful people. "If it's hard to bear, you don't have to force yourself to appear and dance in front of others, Amu. I never intended to make you work like th-"

"I know that," Amu snapped at him. He stared at her and her face felt hot; she never meant to sound so nasty. She looked down at her lap sheepishly. "But, you know I don't want to sit on the sidelines. That would be unfair of me. I would not make you earn on your own and besides, I want work. I have to work and you know that."

"You do not _have_ to work," he said indifferently.

"It may not have passed your attention but, indeed, I do have to work," she drawled. "Everytime you try to work, you get fired in the next hour! You're not business minded and never put on diplomatic smiles. In addition to that, you're extremely uncooperative and refuse to negotiate." Having started, she was unable to stop her mouth from going on after prompting such criticism. Yet Ikuto listened to her ramble on with a light heart and a wry smirk waiting to curl his mouth. This only made the corners of her frown dip lower. "You're thick-headed and arrogant and fussy. You hate being around others nor do you have patience for them. I doubt you could really have continued your long-standing job of playing the lute for so long without some help. How would you have survived? You can barely feed yourself, forget receiving enough money to feed two people."

It was quiet and Amu was breathless from her merciless critique. It helped cool her down and realize that she had said some not-so-nice things of her only companion and family. Her eyes shifted guiltily as he kept quiet and continued to go about tampering with his instrument. Finally, he stopped fidgeting with the strings of his lute, putting it away to look at her. His face broke out into a cajoling smirk – taunting her passionate little speech – when he edged near her face and placed a hand on her lower back to draw her close until they were nose to nose.

"Done already?" Her eyes lowered in guilt and Ikuto watched as her lips slowly parted, no doubt seconds away from a soft and unnecessary apology. "I'm not mad," he said and she slowly lifted her gaze up at his face, eyes glowing in the candle-lit chamber. He pulled her closer still. "Although, I was hoping you'd say something more romantic or heroic for a change. It would really set the mood for something better."

Ikuto watched her flush from the proximity and the feel of his hand on her skin, chuckling at her embarrassed face. Amu glowered and hit him with one of the pillows that lay around the chamber, pushing him away from her. It did nothing to dissolve the way he was leering.

"Oh, shut up," the girl grumbled. She knew he would not last long before he began teasing her again. "No matter what people may say about me, I won't stop doing what I love simply because I was marked by a demon. Despite what others say or think, I cannot hate this mark and I never will." Ikuto said nothing, watching her silently. His shadowed eyes, however, betrayed his incredulity and Amu saw that disbelief, clear as the morning dew that clung to greenery at dawn. "On the contrary, I love it. This is the reason I am breathing, walking, talking, and living. It is all thanks to the heart under this 'flower'. Secretly hiding this mark because of other people's gossiping, that would be disrespectful to the demon who gave me this mark."

She touched the mark gently, her eyes filled with sincerity. He looked in awe at the gratitude and love she had for a mark she had the misfortune of being cursed with. It amazed him that she held no bitterness or evil wishes for her parents that 'sold' her body without consent or the contempt she was shown by her own race. They sat in slight quiet. Ikuto gazed at her for a long time, his breath held while he searched for any reluctance; even the slightest aversion. He found none.

"If you're sure," he murmured.

"I'm fine," she insisted gently. "Dancing is about the only thing I can do well enough to earn money and I enjoy doing it more than anything. It is my own art." Amu closed her eyes and thought about the splendid costumes, the glitter of her (false) jewellery, and the attention of the audience that appreciated her gift and grace.

'_You are the true art._' He longed to tell her that, along with many other things, but held his tongue, the words trapped at the tip. Just as he always did.

"What's more – more than anything, actually – I have to experience my dream at least once in my life," she looked at him in the eyes with her own big, tearful eyes, folded hands, and an expression of longing on her face. "One day, maybe when we have enough money, I will definitely treat us both to some scrumptious sweets! I want to stuff my entire mouth and stomach with desserts! Lots of pasties and chocolates and cakes!"

"Pfft." Ikuto snorted as she all but drooled at the thought of sugar-filled sweets and candies. He saw this answer coming from a mile away. Amu gave him a withering look, scowling and muttering curses under her breath. He was mocking her _dream_!

"Yes, well, pardon me for wanting to indulge in sweets," she quipped indignantly. "I don't suppose you have a dream that is any better than mine. What would you wish for, more time to be lazy?"

He grinned. "That seems like something only you would want." She scowled at him. "It will happen."

The turn of her lips was a poking innocence; a blossom peeking out at the world with its delicate rosy petals. Her tawny eyes looking up with a cheerful twinkle. "…you think so?"

"Yes."

It was a response of a single word but it was more heartfelt than any boisterous speech – not that boisterous speech would suit him. No matter their banter, the tenderness in his usually monotone voice and the smile in his eyes did not go unnoticed by the girl. Amu flushed happily and smiled back at him just as brightly, while they continued to eat their "dessert." She sighed at the lack of confectionary splendour in it. For now, fresh apples were enough to satisfy her sweet tooth.

For a long time, she avoided looking at him. It was hard to eat when he stared so intently at her. "Oi."

"Hm?"

"You have some stuff over there. I assumed you would have noticed by now." Ikuto leaned in and gently rubbed away crumbs from dinner that had stuck to corner of her mouth. He was tempted to call her a child but held his tongue. The heat of her cheeks rose and she gave him a warm smile, muttering her thanks.

When the two were done eating, they cleaned up the chamber. Past nightfall, the candles that had once bathed the room with bright light now sat in their delicate vessels of dripping wax pools. They sat low and the light was dim, flickering. Amu leaned into the softness of the pillows that lay around them on the fuzzy rug, her elbows perched on his leg. He looked down at her with his deep eyes and moved a strand of hair that covered her amber irises from view. She sighed, leaning into the warmth of his electric touch. Ikuto Tsukiyomi was her saviour; he had picked her up as a child and helped her grow. To her, he was a parent, brother, and best friend. He was the most important person in her existence and she cherished him – no matter how much the two fought. She had no idea where she would be in life without him.

She closed her eyes peacefully and rested her head on his lap. "Play me a song?"

"No 'please' or even a 'thank you?' Weren't you raised with any manners little strawberry-girl?" He flicked her forehead none too gently. Opening her eyes with a yelp, she scrunched her face into a pout and rubbed the spot vigorously, it had turned red against her pasty complexion.

"Not when that person was you," she retorted with a hiss. "But I did learn my manners, however, I know that there's no use using them on you, you big meanie!"

"'Big meanie'? Are you perhaps an infant stuck inside the body of a young woman?" Suddenly he paused, hand on his chin and humming contemplatively. Ikuto's eyes roamed up and down over her figure in a way that made Amu's eyes narrow. Surely, he was not thinking to comment about the most taboo subject – in her opinion. "And yet, that does not seem unimaginable. After all, you are rather poorly endowed compared to other girls. One would suppose there would be some size to a young woman's chest by sixteen years of age."

Amu blushed in mortification – not that such things were much of a surprise. He had jumped over and kicked dirt at the boundary she kept of the most unfavourable insults. "You are horrible," she seethed, nostrils flaring indignantly. "Do not just stare at my chest as you please!" She punched his stomach pathetically. Besides, he was wrong. Her body was just taking its time to mature, that was all. She was a young woman not a silly little girl. Speaking of which… "And stop calling me a little girl because if you have failed to notice, in the past thirteen or so years, I have actually grown. And it happened whether you noticed it or not."

"Have you really?" The dancer ignored the derisive jab, continuing with her complaints.

"_Yes_,_ really_," she spat. "So, I am most certainly not a little strawberry girl! What is that, anyhow?" He merely smirked at her and the look in his eyes did nothing to soothe her tensions. "Now see here, I am a young lady and deserve to be treated as such, thank you very much! So, would you play me a song, _please_?"

"Yes, yes." He loved teasing her. Her childishness and strong reaction to his endless taunting only made his pastime all the more fun. But, for tonight, Ikuto halted his jeering to comply with her request. He took hold of his lute again. It was an old but beautiful thing. The aged cedar wood was polished with care by Amu and one could assume it was practically brand new.

Her eyes looked up at him, melting ponds of gold, patient and tender. Ikuto's fingers passed over the strings and, without looking away from her, he strummed a sweet lullaby – _her_ lullaby. She closed her eyes from the soothing melody, softly humming along with it. Ikuto's skilled fingers stroked the strings like silk and his entire being relaxed with the sound while Amu was slowly lulled into a gentle slumber. When he felt the firm pressure and warmth of Amu's body pressing into him, limp from sleep, he stopped playing. He looked down at her peaceful sleeping form and ran his fingers through her long, rosy tresses. Snoozing soundly, she cuddled closer to his own warmth and he closed his own eyes and rested his head against the pillows behind him. Opening his eyes again, Ikuto moved Amu's head onto the pillows beside him carefully so she wouldn't wake up – not that she would anyways. He grabbed one of blankets and covered both of them with it, even though he knew he would not need it as she did.

Her attire did her no justice to the chill. The entire plain of her stomach, her arms, and shoulders were bare to the world, only covering up her bust. Ikuto smirked at this. He really was just teasing her before. He remembered it like it had happened yesterday, the days that he used to jeer her for being so "poorly endowed" as he referred to it. Except with her maturing, he was now eating his own words. Though, truth be told, he did not mind it one bit.

Amu shifted in her sleep, balling up and burrowing herself against Ikuto once more. He grinned lightly when she mumbled nonsense about "desserts" and "stupid Ikuto." Protectively, he draped his arms around her, pulling her closer to him.

The flames flickered with the rush of air from his movements. After he had burrowed himself comfortably into their sleeping rug, he craned his head to inspect the candles that were mere minutes away from giving out. The once waxy column was a heated puddle and the wick was at the end of its life, with little over his finger's width to spare. After a second's contemplation letting it be or blowing it out, he opted with the latter. With one strong puff of air, the fire was extinguished and a blanket of dark fell over the room.

The girl in his arms squirmed closer, digging into his front and latching her hand to the back of his tunic in a vice grip. Ikuto smirked. "Sweet dreams, Amu."

**...::::~ Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ ~::::...**


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two…**

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><p>Amu stirred awake to streaming sunlight and the sound of the bustling town from outside of her window. Yawning and rubbing the dust out of her eyes, she felt an oddly warm pressure on her side. Rapidly blinking the sleep out, she looked at her surroundings and realized that Ikuto was the odd weight splayed across her lower abdomen – though more of Ikuto's arm than him. Her head lay on his right arm and was nestled in the crook of his neck while their feet were tangled up together, along with the blanket caught in the mess of their feet.<p>

She looked at his sleeping face with fascination. He looked so peaceful and childish in his sleep, unlike when he was wide awake and constantly irritating her. She brushed a few wisps of hair away from his face affectionately, just as he had done to her the night before. Amu held her breath when she felt him twitch at the touch, making her she smile knowingly – his ears were his vulnerable and probably most sensitive point.

Gently, she slid his arms away from her body and slipped her feet out of the entanglement. She got up and successfully made her way to the bathroom without a peep.

What she did not know was that Ikuto was already awake when she had gotten up. He was – as always – pretending to be sound asleep. She seemed to like waking up before him. But, when her back was turned to him he opened his eyes to watch her sneak off, smirking to himself all the while. He watched her try to tip toe to the bathroom noiselessly – a feat easier said than done for Amu. He chuckled softly upon hearing a "whoops!" followed by a small crash and then another and finally a chorus of groans from inside of the washroom.

While waiting for Amu, he always got very bored. She took a long time to do her morning routine. He decided he would "wake up" without her scolding, just for today. He fixed the disarray of pillows and the blankets and packed up their very few belongings. When the bright-eyed girl came back out, she was freshened up from her bath and was mildly surprised to see him up before she was ready. She was, however, more than stunned to see that he – _Ikuto_ – had cleaned up.

"I can believe that Ikuto woke up on his own for once but cleaning up the room for me? Definitely impossible." She placed her hands on her hips and, with her head cocked to the side, she asked him, "What have you done with the _real_ Ikuto?" Said lad smirked at her wry tone of voice.

"He decided he was not too fond of perverted little kids looking at him while he slept so he made me his replacement." Amu flushed at his comment and threw her wet towel at his face. He easily caught it before it hit his face. "Nice throw."

"I am not perverted or a child. Nor did I watch you when you were sleeping." Amu glowered at him as she sat down next to him and reached over to grab some strawberries from the bowl of fruits that one of the housekeepers probably brought.

"Says you, Strawberry."

Amu rolled her eyes at him. "That nickname is ridiculous."

"I think it's quite appropriate." They bantered and ate their breakfast with their usual ruckus, opting to throw bits and pieces of the waste at each other for fun. Although, when she reached her hand out to grab some of the plump, purple grapes from the bowl, Ikuto slapped her hand away from it.

"Stop being such a gluttonous boar. You can't eat everything on your own, stupid." But as she spotted the morose expression on his face, Amu knew that there was something awry. "Ikuto? What's the matter?"

"Don't eat those grapes. They have been poisoned. I can smell it," he said gravely, all traces of his humour gone. He had being hoping that she would not eat any and would save herself the pain of ever knowing.

Amu noticed his nostrils flare while he avoided meeting her gaze. Wordlessly, she rose to her feet and picked up the bowl. She stared at it for a moment, face stoic before going to toss the remaining fruits into the burner. When she came back into the room, she found Ikuto gazing out the window, arms tightly crossed and eyes sinister as he stared down at townsfolk bustling about in the morning hours. Amu walked towards him slowly and touched a hand to his arm; his shoulders eased. He turned to look at her, already looking haggard before the day had barely begun. She stared back in sought of comfort, knowing he was doing the same. Sooner than he wanted, she had to lower her gaze from his. They were thinking the along the same lines.

She voiced it aloud, treading on the topic carefully. "I suppose we should begin our preparations to move to the next town. People get bored seeing the same dance twice, you know."

They had lost the rest of their appetite, though they had eaten plenty to begin with, as they grabbed their things and made their way out of town. This time, the duo made sure to put the hoods on their cloaks up over their faces to avoid any accidents or encounters with the villagers. They did not need anything more to ruin their already sour moods – Ikuto especially. Amu had a suspicion there would be no stopping him from a scuffle if they were to come across any of the townsfolk from the 'apple incident', as she referred to it. But it was a lengthy walk to the outskirts of town and there was no telling who they could bump into. They were already forced to travel light and had to leave behind their camel at the inn to slip out undetected ‒ Ikuto had suspected they were being kept tabs on and their steed would only be a hindrance. So with all of these risks in mind, Amu held her breath and forced herself forward as though walking on broken glass. Nevertheless, she walked alongside Ikuto, keeping her gaze down and clutching his hand tightly. Her paranoia was overwhelming, squeezing his hand harder and harder every time she believed someone looked their way.

Eventually, when they were safely on the outskirts of the small town, Amu was able to breathe easily. Outside of the town, they finally lowered their hoods and could began their journey to the next town. "Where do you suppose we should go next?"

"West and then along the sea north." Amu nodded in agreement. So far, they had not managed to cross the sea or go up river, but now was a good a time as any to start. They were aware that up north were the several sea ports and where there were sea ports, there were cities full of people and more money from trade. But it was a long way to go and they would have to make several stops at villages on the way. Glancing back at the town they were leaving, Amu smiled and turned back around to face the prospect of new towns and new opportunities.

But until then, they had to endure the heat of arid lands. They treaded through the desert for a few hours until coming across another village near an oasis. They replenished their supplies and managed to obtain a camel from a shepherd ‒ Amu sighing all the while as they spent the last of their money. After a quick rest, they were back on their feet and travelling again. They should have been several miles away from the last village by now but still far from the next one. She knew that it would be several weeks before they managed to reach the sea but they had no other choice. It was easy to get lost in the desert and, subsequently, even easier to end up on death's door if one did not journey cautiously.

Getting to the northern port-cities would take many months. '_And we'll have to take the mountain pass south, first._' They planned to stop at a mountainous area where a familiar bandit-inn was located; it was a shady tavern where everyone was cloaked and talked in whispers. Fortunately, conversation among strangers was rare and the atmosphere was thick with distrust which was why they frequented it when they were near.

In the barren regions of their current path, something had picked up in the still, dry air. A strong gust of hot desert wind blew over them. Within milliseconds, from what had been a peaceful day, a sand storm had brewed and was swirling around them. While storms were usual, ones of such magnitude were not common.

"How can there be such a desert tornado in this season?" Amu shouted against the wind, digging her feet into the ground and bracing herself at the impact in vain. She clutched onto Ikuto for dear life. He swept her into his cloak, holding her head against him so she could stay safe amidst the billowing haze of dust. Ikuto ground his teeth together while tightening his grip on Amu. This was not an ordinary storm.

"Don't worry. It should be over soon. This is far from some unseasonal dust storm." His assumption was proven correct when the wind halted abruptly and a loud popping sound was heard.

The sand finally closed in on them quickly. Amu coughed violently, waving her hands around to air away the grainy dirt speckles. Naturally, it disappeared and in its place stood a cute, boyish creature with stunning violet hair, gold eyes, and elf-like ears. He wore a red cloak and on the top of his head sat a small gold crown.

"Peasants, I heard your weak cry for help so I flew right over!" He said with an air of haughtiness. Amu was astonished and Ikuto regarded the creature – he decided to dub him as the 'midget' – with indifference.

"Peasant? Are you referring to us?" Amu spluttered. "A-And we never even called you," she said in alarm. She looked over to Ikuto who merely shrugged. "Forgive me, but I think you have the wro-"

"You are the commoner Amu Hinamori, correct?" Amu spluttered a stunned affirmation and continue with her previous explanation but her words were cut short. "Which means you are the travelling dancer who is an 'Akuma no Hana'." Barely giving Amu anytime to respond again, the little creature floated up in front of Amu and observed her carefully. "My apologies for the sudden appearance but my Master, Lord Tadase, demands to hold conference with you."

"Wait just a second! I demand to know what‒_!_" But before she had any time to say anything more, the floating boy grabbed onto Amu's hand, who clutched onto the unimpressed Ikuto, and teleported them in a whirlwind.

In the blink of an eye, they were no longer in a desolate desert. Instead, they were inside the luxurious and lavish palace of the Zahabi Kingdom, standing before the First Prince, Tadase Hotori. With long blonde hair and ruby eyes, said prince was sitting on a comfortable lounging seat surrounded by dozens of maids and thousands of luxuries of sweets, jewels, and anything possibly imaginable. Then, on either side of the walls stood rows and rows of guards, dressed in their tunics and turbans. They stood at full attention as all of their hands clutched the hilts of the swords in their sheaths, ready to protect the young monarch.

During their teleportation, the little creature had managed to change Amu and Ikuto's usual attire into glamorous clothing, fit for royalty. The dancer was stiff with worry, imagining what would become of her if she got even a spot on her costume of silks and satins. But, it could not be helped that they were sitting in on the floor. They sat kneeling, since they were in front of what seemed to be the prince, with his gaudy garments and elevated seat. However, the prince paid no attention to Ikuto and concentrated solely on Amu. The dancer sweat nervously from his gaze, tense from the attention she was receiving. She had never been looked at the way he looked at her. It was extremely nerve-wracking. Still, she held her head high and avoided meeting his eyes.

'_His clothes... they're very unique. I've never seen so many layers and patterns on one person._'

It was different from what she saw the people in villages wear. They wore simple robes and garments which they could move easily in, without worrying about soiling their clothes. Of course, her own costumes were also very beautiful, too. Still, they were nothing like what the prince wore. She took a peek at the prince, only to notice he was still staring holes through her, and promptly tore her eyes away from him. She saw him long enough to catch his smile and it made her face burn. Despite his showy apparel, there was no denying that he was quite a handsome fellow.

"Miss Hinamori, it is a pleasure to meet you. Although you probably know who I am already it would be rude of me to _not_ introduce myself once more. I am Tadase Hotori, the heir to the throne of Zahabi and I can assure you the pleasure is all mine." He bowed his head towards her and, stiffly, Amu bowed back from where she sat. "What a magnificent flower you are, just as the rumours have said." He spoke to them – mostly Amu – in a polite tone. She turned scarlet at his flattering words and sincere tone. She restrained herself from putting her hand to her heart as it drummed in her chest.

"I am honoured you think so. Your Highness," she added timidly, hardly minding Ikuto's intent gaze on her, and almost felt the ridiculous urge to swoon when the prince's smile widened. Why in the world was this prince so handsome?

"Were you surprised by my messenger? I apologize if you were startled. He's quite the surprise when unexpected, believe me." The prince chuckled lightly. Before the rosy-haired dancer could answer – that is, if anything could come out of her strangled state – she was distracted by something else. A very nearby presence, just over her shoulder.

"Hmm… You smell sweet." Amu stiffly looked to her right, where the prince's so-called messenger was sniffing her curiously. She giggled apprehensively, not knowing what to do in the odd situation she had been placed in. "Not bad for a commoner, that is."

"Erm, thank you?" The dancer didn't know whether to feel complimented or not; but the prince only smiled at her warmly.

"I see my messenger has taken a liking to you. As have I." Her stomach leapt with a flutter at his words. However, she was so distracted by the creature floating near her – scrutinizing her so curiously – that she did not find it in her to redden as she normally would have. Amu's confusion and irritation was fuelled when she heard Ikuto snort from behind her.

"Kiddy King," she heard Ikuto mutter. Amu glanced at him pointedly. Still, the prince did not bother to acknowledge his company and continued with his discourse.

"He is the genie who serves me, Kiseki. As long as I order him to, I assure you that he will not inflict any harm on you." The prince stood up and made his way to Amu, picking up the genie and moving him aside.

'_Won't inflict any harm as long as you say so, huh?_' Amu thought bemusedly but her thoughts froze when the prince seemed lean very close to her. Too close for her comfort. Then, he proceeded to grab a lock of her exotic hair and bring it near his lips.

"I have heard that Akuma no Hana have an incredibly sweet fragrance to them, rumoured to make both humans and devils intoxicated by it." He took a whiff of that strand of hair and then lightly touched it to his lips, before letting his gaze fall on her once more. "I see that that is also true." Amu tried her best to smile, but it came out looking like she had a toothache. Yet, the prince remained oblivious to her discomfort. She tried to make the conversation less awkward, for herself, without success.

"Umm… D-did you c-call me here to d-dance…?"

He laughed loudly and arrogantly, effectively startling Amu. "Forgive me, Miss Hinamori, but I could never care about something as trivial as _dancing_." Kiseki nodded his head vigorously, laughing along with his master.

'_Something so trivial?_' Amu thought, shocked by his sudden mood change. She felt insulted that he had snuffed aside her dancing so easily – what had happened to his kind, tender, and Princely demeanour from before?

"Trivial? Pardon my insolence, but I would hardly call dancing 'trivial', Prince Tadase." She said in a cool tone. The prince froze mid laughter and Amu felt herself swallow thickly – talking back to the Prince? _Was she out of her mind?_ She fisted her hands together to keep them from trembling, expecting the worse from the royal's fiery aura. The maids all backed away quickly, standing as far from the prince as they could manage. The guards seemed to sweat profusely but forced themselves to stay in position.

Amu observed their strange behaviour for a while – had the guards just gone through a simultaneous shudder? – before peering back at the prince. Unexpectedly, the prince erupted into a course of boisterous laughter. Amu yelped back, scrambling next to Ikuto for some sort of protection. Ikuto's face was void of emotion yet an arm went around Amu instinctively, pulling her close. He was simply too busy making sure Amu would not catch the lad's stupidity – was it contagious? – and was safe rather than care about the "kiddy king's" antics.

"_Prince?_ Prince! I am no mere prince! Do not take me for a fool, girl! I was born to be a king, the almighty Sultan of the all powerful desert regions of the Zahabi realm!" He boomed with laughter, striking a ridiculous – not to mention a completely unnecessary – pose with his little genie. Finally, he stopped laughing to turn to a bewildered Amu. "You!" He pointed at her with his arm outstretched. Amu tried to look unaffected by the change in his character but her insides were shaking. "Become my woman!"

She blinked at him, face vacant. "…Pardon me?" Surely, she had not heard him clearly.

"Become my woman!" Amu continued to stare at the prince impassively. Apparently, she _had_ heard him clearly.

Ikuto looked at the prince as blankly as ever – although his thoughts were not as composed as his appearance – while the dancer spluttered back to life. "I-I beg your pardon? You want be to be your **_what_** exactly?" Amu choked on her words, flushing in humiliation from the absurd idea.

"My temporary mistress, of course," he clarified in a matter-of-fact tone. "'Akuma no Hana' are interesting. A beautiful girl with a devil's heart is a rarity among extraordinary things and I like to collect extraordinary things for myself. With you, I can provide proof of my influence to those silly nobles and other lower level _princes_ of other countries!" Tadase continued to ramble conceitedly, his nose stuck in the air pompously. Suddenly, Amu found his previous attractiveness had vanished into nothingness.

'_Where did the intelligent and chivalrous person from before go,_' she wondered. '_I have heard that in this world, there are as many dim-witted nobles and princes as there are stars in the sky, however I never imagined that this Tadase…_' Amu sweated nervously at the sight of the prattling prince.

She had to find one way or another to weasel her way out of this situation. Her life was not meant to be wasted confined in a jail of gems and meaningless flattery for the sake of some wealthy man. Her parents had not made sacrifices in vain. "B-but if I damage your reputation? Surely, you wouldn't want your repute as a Royal to be ruined...?"

"Do not worry your pretty head over the details," he dismissed with a waving hand. "It is just for a short while. You would be my temporary mistress. And my reputation would hardly become ruined, with an exotic Akuma no Hana dancer in my hand. On the contrary, it would only show off how powerful I truly am. Like I said, temporary." Tadase shrugged impassively. "You should think about yourself and the benefits you would gain, Miss Hinamori. If I recall correctly, you are going to die soon."

Amu felt tightness come about her throat, as if a noose had been tied to prevent her from breathing. She looked down at her clasped palms. From the prince's unconcerned tone, her heart felt like thousands of swords had freshly stabbed it. She croaked out softly, voice breaking when she said, "I know."

But, Tadase was too busy talking to hear her.

It was not a new revelation that her fate held only her demise, however being told so blatantly and indifferently hurt her like no other. Ikuto's teeth ground together while his lips pulled back in a snarl. His eyes narrowed at the princes words. He looked at Amu with concern. She was breathing erratically, eyes shifting in an attempt to distract herself, trying hard to not let the words affect her. But he could feel it – they were tearing her part. Still, the stupid prince paid her no attention as he rambled on.

"I know of your story already. Such a pitiful existence," Tadase paced about the dancer and her companion, talking in a silken tone. "Your body was traded for your heart by your wretched parents and since then, you have endured a abject life where other demons wish to slice -you in half and humans shun you aside for what you are. To make matters worse, you will have to return that heart to the devil when you turn seventeen, true? And when you do, your life will end, of course. Then, logically, this is an even better deal for you." His cruel words continued to pierce Amu – she balled her shaking fists up, trying desperately to not look weak. She couldn't look weak now – it would be giving in to his tricks. "You will lose your life either way."

"I-I don't…" Her throat clutched tighter at the things the prince said until she found herself unable to speak.

"If you become my woman, it will not be a loss. I'll let you live in luxury that you have never experienced before." He crouched to her level and held Amu's hands in his. He failed to notice her flinch at his touch or the way Ikuto's anger flared immensely. "What a good way to spend the time you have to live, without regrets. And in your remaining time, you won't have to scrape up a pathetic living as a travelling performer since everything you could possibly want will be right at your fingerti-_!_"

What happened next was too quick for Amu to make complete sense of – a sudden flash and a series of appalled shouts around her. He could no longer contain himself. Ikuto finally lost his temper. He lunged at the prince, knocking him to the ground. The usually silent musician towered above the prince, his hand wrapped around the prince's throat. He emanated a sensation of murder and his eyes were cold death as they looked at the cowering figure that lay on the ground.

"You sick bastard," Ikuto spat fiercely, clutching the weak prince's neck tighter still. A drone filled his head, a loud buzzing that kept him from hearing anything but the crackle of his own rage.

"Ikuto!" Amu snapped up at attention. "What do you think you're doing?" She forgot about her previous worries, running up to the frenzied musician and tugging his arms with all her might. "Let go of him! He'll die! You'll be killed!" Her words fell deaf to his ears.

"Don't you even think about defiling her mind any more than you already have," the azure-headed man snarled dangerously. "To think you had the nerve to pull a move like that while in my presence! You rotten son of a–"

Ikuto's actions caused a violent uproar in the palace chamber. All of the maids ran about frantic, scared for their own lives but wanting to help their prince. All of the sultan's men had rushed forward, swords drawn and faces livid, to rescue the prince who was quickly turning blue.

"How dare you act in such a way towards his Highness, Tadase," the head guard yelled. "Capture him! No one is to lay hands on his Lordship."

"Stop it, Ikuto! Let him go, please!" She latched herself onto Ikuto's, trying with all her strength to get him away from Prince Tadase. She watched the guards close in around them and she desperately pried his hand off the prince's neck, his fingers finally letting go. The conceited prince gulped in air as soon as his throat was free of the iron grip that wrung it, gasping generous amounts with a mix of terror and outrage. Tadase lay hunched over on the cold tile floor, wheezing and coughing. In the strongest voice possible, he panted commands at his guards.

"T-Take them away," he croaked, fingers shaking as he pointed feebly at the pair. "Take both of them away, now! A-And make sure to execute this filthy man tomorrow morning!" Tadase looked at Ikuto vehemently, fear etched in his eyes noticeably. "Go, now!"

The men did as they were told.

"He didn't mean to! He just... you can't do this to him!" Amu struggled against the grasps of a guard, trying to escape without success. She screamed when one grabbed Ikuto's hair gruffly, begging the prince to call off his ruthless guards. "Please, Tadase." The blonde's eyes widened when she used his name so earnestly. For a second, he felt his anger falter before he composed himself.

"You do not have the right to call me by name, commoner," the prince said coldly. "You have forgotten that you are speaking to royalty. You are in my palace, within my kingdom. I do as I please. You have no power over me." Tadase nodded to the officers holding her back and they leered at her wickedly as their lord walked away, his genie trailing behind him.

"You're going this way, _miss_." The guard spat the title in disgust, but Amu did not care about such petty things. She turned to Ikuto, her eyes were filled with rage, fear, and hurt. Her cries echoed through the halls among the many other shouts, watching the prince's retreating figure.

"Where are you taking me? Let me go!" Her eyes flashed with angry tears when she saw the suited guards chain Ikuto, savagely pushing him to the ground like an animal. Amu leapt away from the guards and tried to run to him; only to be pulled back, again.

She watched them treat him so brutally. "Stay back, filthy wench." The dancer became hysterical.

"Ikuto! Th-They can't hurt you! They can't–it's not right–and–I-I–Just wait, I'll definitely get you out of there!" Ikuto's face was expressionless to others but not her. She could see that his eyes were blazing with intense ferocity but his calmness only made her cry more.

"Shh, Amu." He cupped her tear-stained cheek with his free hand and she leaned into his warm touch. "If anything happens, call my name. I will come for you. I will protect you."

She yelled pointlessly, only sobs escaping her mouth.

"I promise." He smiled his small smile and before she knew it, the feel of his warmth was gone. He was dragged away to the prisons. The guard holding on to her scoffed at the two; then he dragged Amu away to her own chamber. He watched furiously as she was gruffly led away by the prince's herd of barbarians, her head hung and jaws clenched. The pansy Prince was going to pay.

Ikuto was tied in chains and cuffs as the troop of guards led him to his cell. The head guard ridiculed Amu and him, mocking their "act," or so the guard put it. The others snickered and sent dirty looks at Ikuto, who remained as stoic as ever. This only irritated them more.

"Still trying to act cool," the head guard sneered. "Well, sorry to tell you that a lady killer like you can't even protect a flea when you're chained like this. So, it'd do you good to forget about your lady love. Or better yet, if you're so desperate, you can take the time to fantasize your last time with her before you die."

They reached the cell and shoved Ikuto into it before locking it. They guffawed at their crude jokes. Their backs to Ikuto, they hadn't the slightest clue that he was smirking at their barefaced stupidity. They had yet to realize the joke was on them.

"Looks like tomorrow morning is going to be entertaining," one guard scoffed.

"I'm sure Prince Tadase is going to have fun making a trophy out of this one's head." They were overcome by fits of laughter.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that if I were you," Ikuto whispered too quietly to be heard, backing away into his cell. Without a doubt, blood would be shed.

**...::::~ ****Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ**** ~::::...**


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three…**

* * *

><p>Amu was surprised by the calm she felt walking down the dull and dim walls, escorted by an entourage of (funny smelling) palace guards. Most of the path was composed of lavishness and splendor, a fitting palace bordered with colours and bright tapestry.<p>

The corridors were dark and made from bleak stone, lit by only flaming torches that heightened the moldy scent it excreted. The girl in chains was sure she had heard a few squeaks and the scampering of tiny feet, but it was much to dark for her eyes to make out the shape of vermin that probably scurried past her. Even the rats inhibiting the palace had more freedom than her.

The change in decor came almost suddenly, as though to serve as a reminder the nature of Amu's condition. It also reminded her of the horrific tales and stories told to children about the handsome, prince-like saviour that saved the princess trapped by the less attractive villain in the lower dungeon. In any other situation, the stark contrast of the environments and her expected "saviour" would have been (dare she think it) comical. After all, Ikuto was no prince and he was anything but a genteel, justice-seeking, maiden-rescuing vigilante. But the thought that her situation was better than Ikuto's drowned out any humour she might have had; especially considering the death sentence that hung over his head at the moment.

Suddenly, she felt something block her way and she stumbled forward, not falling to the ground, but losing her footing. She had no doubt it was the foot of one of the men beside her – the one with the biggest grin, if that was any indication to go by. The guards surrounding her were getting on her nerves and she wanted nothing more to throttle the lot of them. They were extremely crass and had no manners as they shoved her down the halls to her chamber. But in comparison to Ikuto being captured, teaching the guards some manners were the least of her worries.

"I have to say, Lord Tadase's lack of consideration is so troublesome sometimes," one of the guards complained.

Amu snorted mentally, her mind viciously slandering the hypocritical man. '_Honestly, do you believe that you are any better?_'

"I know, I don't wanna be near this devil-girl," another one grumbled.

"Well, he just wants to show off his authority right? After all, his mother was of poor origins since she wasn't a royal."

"They say she was the lowliest concubine turned wife by word of the Sultan, because he allegedly loved her."

"Loved her or _lusted_ for her?"

"Who cares about it now? She died either way!" They roared with laughter as Amu looked at them sourly, wondering at how people could be so cruel.

"By law, our beloved 'Prince' is just another bastard."

"Looks like the musician was right!" The dancer ground her teeth together, putting her strength into holding her venomous words back as they continued to laugh boorishly. If she wanted to help Ikuto, she couldn't lose her chance by lashing out at the guards. She couldn't help but pity the prince; he was probably aware of these ongoing rumours and how disloyal his own workers were. Life while growing up being known as a "mistress' son" must have been hard on him. Of course, that did not excuse his previous behaviour and Amu's contempt for him had not decreased.

"Don't forget, he's the only heir to the throne."

"For now, anyways." This bit of information caught Amu's attention and she glanced up to her left to look at the guard who was talking. He didn't notice her sudden interest and continued with his story. "It's just a matter of time before the official Sultana gives birth to their upcoming child. I heard from rumours that they had an expert Healer come, told them that they have prospects for another **son**." He said in a low voice; the other guards looked content with this new piece of gossip and continued to chat idly about the Princes circumstances and his future.

"Soon enough he'll become no more than a mere dependant." They scoffed at the idea of a demoted royal. "Then his 'I am a King' rant will come to a permanent stop won't it?"

At long last, they had reached her chamber. Thankfully, the corridor was no longer dark and had regained its usual brightness. Amu was shoved none too gently into the large, hollow room she was to be imprisoned in until the prince showed up. Quickly one went up to her and unlocked her manacles, throwing them to the side as if they burned the man's hands. As fast his feet could get him away from her, he walked back.

Hands on the handle of the door, the guards sneered at her, "You'd better behave yourself, wench." They shut the door with a thunderous bang that echoed off the walls of the spacious area, their piercing cackles fading away slowly. Amu looked around the room with a sigh. No matter how lavish the room was, it was void of any human presence or emotion. She spotted a window on the other end and thrust it open.

Amu yelped as she was met with a surprise, she leapt back a little. Slowly, she inched forward to the open window and peered out. "It's so high up," she murmured.

She had no idea that she was this far away from the ground and what's more how dark it had gotten outside, since now the sun only peeked out from the horizon. Apparently, such heights did not bother royalty. However, the length of space from her view at the window and the forest floor below made her insides turn violently.

"Yes, it's the fifth floor, Miss Amu." Amu jerked backwards, startled by the intrusion of a second voice. She turned around slowly to see the Prince standing in the doorway. She had been so preoccupied that she failed to notice the door open. Tadase closed the door and the thunderous sound of the large wooden door closing echoed in the room again. "Directly below this chamber is the palace's hunting forest – my hunting grounds, of course. It's left alone after sundown. The worst of the beasts and ghosts come out in the woods at night," he leered at her.

"I don't believe in ghosts. Beasts on the other hand," she trailed off with an insinuating snarl, eyes cold. He strode towards her casually, russet eyes fixed on her the same way it had been earlier. Soon he was so close to her that she had to back up until her back came in contact with the edge of the wall, just where the window started.

"Did you know, Miss Amu, they say that a demon's heart is the most delicious treat to other demons?" Tadase spoke politely and casually, however his actions showed otherwise. The blonde's arm was placed against the wall, on the side of her head so he had effectively trapped Amu. "They also say that it's the best quality fruit. It might me interesting to use you as bait and see what they do."

'_And who exactly is "they", pray-tell?_' Amu thought bitterly. He used the tip of his finger to touch the flower on the middle of her chest, and she sucked in her breath sharply before gently prying them off of her. His brown eyes glinted with false innocence and amusement. She did not appreciate this invasion of space.

"I would like it if you did not touch me so intimately. I have no intentions on being a ridiculous prize to be paraded about for a wealthy man's pleasure." He stared at her as though he could not comprehend her words. "I decline any offer to be your _woman_… your Highness," she added as an after thought.

"You certainly are bold, I'll give you that," he said with hard eyes.

"I learn from the best." Tadase did not have think twice to know the dancer was referring to her travelling companion – he was not as stupid as people always assumed. Still, he was taken aback by Amu's strong, confident voice. There was passion and fire in the depths of her eyes; they unnerved him more than he would let her know. The girl in front of him took his silence and loss of words as a queue to be able to continue. He should never have underestimated her. "I am looking for the demon who gave me his heart. In one year, this life that my mother and father saved for me will come to an end and there is nothing I can do about such a fate. Nevertheless, if I search for him – my devil – until 'the appointed day' and if I can meet him once again, maybe I will find a good way to lengthen my life. It does not matter how slim the chances are as long as there are some. I refuse to conform to a life others would like to make for me."

As her unwavering eyes continued to stare him down, he began to think, '_Is she talking to me?_' Those orbs of molten gold looking at the nakedness of his soul and the thought of such an intrusion made his throat tighten. Or maybe it was just his collar? '_Why does it matter? How can she dare to contradict me? The future Sultan! Does she have no sense of fear? Is it because she is cursed?_' She certainly seemed afraid when she had walked into his palace. She was afraid when he stood over. And she was desperate when he had sentenced her companion's death.

She was the strangest girl he had ever encountered.

He pondered over her bravado, wondering if it was all a false front or she was just that ignorant of the dangers she faced. She had no sense of fear for herself however, she feared for the life of some scraggly musician. Did her relationship with him extend outside business? After all, they seemed to be quite feeling – both literally and figuratively – about each other. They obviously spent time in each others' company to be that familiar. '_Then again,_' Tadase thought, staring at her curiously. '_Why should that be any of my concerns?_'

His staring had rubbed Amu the wrong way and she gnashed her teeth together, thinking that he was looking down on her once more. Royalty or not, she was resolute about her goal and would not allow for hindrances to stand in the way of her objective. Royalty or not, he had not right to contradict her decisions. And royalty or not, she refused to live under him as some lecherous concubine and leave behind her only family.

"I refuse to live a life that I will regret and though it may not seem that way to you, I regret nothing. This is my life. I do not want to blame someone for what I have or have not done, especially when I have someone like Ikuto with me. He has always protected me and cared for me. Just some time ago, he was able to recognize my distress and though I didn't ask him to, he stood up for me against you." Amu suddenly smiled so fondly that it startled the prince. What a drastic mood change. "Could you have ever imagined such a thing, a ridiculous man standing up to a royal for a girl who is apparently cursed? It happened but it still sounds absurd. Does it not seem surreal, Your Highness? Like something out of a child's folktale where a maiden is helped by‒"

She stopped abruptly, turning an interesting shade of red. Astonishingly enough, it matched the crimson tapestry around the chamber. Tadase almost asked her to continue her rambling but held his tongue from requesting impossible things. Where was his dignity? Or rather, why did it seem that her attention always reverted to the less significant musician? What could he give her that Tadase did not have to offer?

'_Are you jealous?_' No, that was absurd. What reason would he have to be jealous of that scraggly man? He was the future-Sultan of Zahabi! He had endless luxuries, courts full of gold, food, and beautiful women as far as the dingy, peasant eye could see. Why was he so bothered by her opinion? '_And_ _why is she so responsive to some peasant man compared to me?_'

"The things I offer to you are things anyone in this world would want. Any normal person would throw away everything and everyone that they have for a chance to experience what is being offered to you." Did she think she was too good for what Tadase had? Inside, he knew that was not the case. She was not shallow; she would not be swayed with materialistic luxuries. However, his heart hardened by pride would not succumb to his weaker consciousness.

"I suppose I'm not a normal person then, am I?" Her answering smile infuriated the prince. The thought of being abnormal did not seem unappealing to her. Amu's abnormality had long been normal for her. "Such a thing is inevitable for those of my kind, you know. Besides, I have no need for such pointless extravagance if my most important person isn't with me."

Tadase scoffed. "You can't expect to actually _save_ that musician." If that were the case, he thought, it would be an understatement to call her simply optimistic. The better description would have been naïve or delusional.

"I am not completely sure. I'll certainly _try_ to save him but I cannot guarantee whether I will make it to him alive. I have been very fortunate these past sixteen years to have survived all that I have. Fate enjoys teasing us." She gave a sigh that was heavy with the weight of all her tribulations, still, Amu smiled on wistfully. He stomped down both the urge to embrace her and the nagging resentment.

'_She said 'us'._' The word disturbed him, slithering in his gut like a greatly offended serpent that longed to covet her like another gem.

"However, when we do get out of here, Ikuto and I, we'll continue to move along. We won't talk about the unfortunate things that happen. It is something we have never done," she admitted, looking down at her hands and remembering the way he would gently tug her along by his side. "We will walk forward with our heads held high and continue this journey looking for the demon whose heart I have borrowed."

"Why would you search for the monster that wants to kill you? That's preposterous! It's like walking into your own grave," he snarled. It made no sense. Amu was poor, unable to attain the riches she could yet she made such brave claims – claims that even he could not make. "Continue walking forward… don't you have any regrets? Don't you wish to live? Are you really that eager to die and throw your life away?"

Amu studied Tadase with a mixture of curiosity and concern. He clutched his head as unwanted tears welled up in his eyes and immediately turned his back to her. The prince was trembling and she could hear the shakiness of his breath as he exhaled.

"Of course I wish to live." Cautiously, she took a step towards him; the sound of it made him stiffen. "But, I would much rather give up my life feeling no regrets rather than feeling only regrets for a life that would inevitably come to an end one day. This is why I regret nothing. But it seems to me that you are not satisfied with that." She watched as he straightened and turned back towards her. There were no traces of tears and if it weren't for the slight pinkness of his eyes, she would never have believed that she saw him so upset. He was back to his air of self-importance.

"I do not understand your way of thinking. Do all common-folk think as you do or is it simply because the demon's heart has afflicted your rational thinking?" She found it ironic that he would comment on her rationality. The nerve of him to comment on her reasoning when he was the one panicking and breaking down merely seconds ago. "You don't regret anything. How can you not regret it? An outcast no matter where you go‒"

And they were back to square one, she thought wearily.

Amu did not feel like she was treated as an outcast everywhere she went. She would be lying if she said the thought did not cross her mind however she was hardly a social pariah. Such people had no one to talk to, no one to confide in, and were alone in this world. Amu woke up to gentle breathing that was not her own, she cooked for someone besides herself, she shared the warmth of her body on the colder desert nights with another, and she always had that same someone to make her smile when she would despair. She was not alone. '_Not when Ikuto's with me._'

"–treated less than a human, a street mongrel, by other humans." She was quickly becoming bored of the way he looked down on her but then his face was once again flushed with anger. It was not directed at her, Amu noted, but to something or someone else. "Those who know what you possess consider you a breathing error and they attempt to murder you for it!" His voice dropped to a harsh whisper. "You're innocent of everything except for the fact that you live. Your life has no value to anyone. You're hated by everyone for simply existing." In fact, his words no longer seemed to be strictly about her. They carried a personal edge in them and she was just the subject used to express it. Amu listened to him attentively, even as he rambled on.

'_For someone who wants to use me for bragging rights,_' Amu pondered, watching as Tadase paced in his tirade. '_He certainly is passionate._' She never once recalled saying or even implying such a thing as being hated for her existence – though it would be wrong to say the sentiments were not true.

"All of this because of a single carving in your skin!" A part of her wanted to say that it was the reason he also sought her out for in the first place but held her tongue. As much as she had resented him earlier, Amu wanted to give the first prince a second chance and become friends. Something about him screamed of lonesomeness. "How could you not hate the world you live in? How could you not hate people and the society? How could you not feel vindictive when they're the ones at fault? Taking away what's precious to you… it's just absurd. How can you not hate them when it's impossible? It's just‒ it's impossible."

"Tadase," she started slowly. He froze in place. She did it again; she called him by only his name. No extra titles, no pomp, no arrogance, no disgust. It rolled off her tongue so simply. "I cannot help but feel as though you already hate this society enough for me. And perhaps, if it isn't for me, do you know any other person who receives such resentment because of a single carving on their skin?"

For a moment, he never said anything and something of hope rose in Amu: could he really know other Akuma no Hana? His facing her was gradual and careful – he was composing himself.

"You never answered my question," he finally said.

Amu released a shaky breath, impatient for the answer to _her_ question. "No, Tadase, I do not despise the world I live in. I do not hate those people or the society that hates me because of this carving." she said all at once. "Now, if you could please—"

"But that's impossible," Tadase sputtered, his voice dropping to a whisper. His wine-coloured eyes appeared to tremble and Amu stared at him in vexation. He was steering them in circles and she wanted out. "Because, it's not–you just can't–"

"But I _can_, Tadase," she stressed. For a third time Amu used only his name, choking him as much as it had the first time. "I don't know if it's just me, but you certainly put on a bizarre farce. I apologize for saying it but you keep evading my question. You know my reasons but I don't know yours because you won't answer _my_ question." She would be taking the reins in this interrogation now – his turn was over. "You are not someone who would make someone of my kind your 'mistress' for just the pleasure of displaying something rare. What is your reason? Why the farce? It certainly seems to take a lot of effort for you to keep up."

Obviously, she was seeing the vulnerable side of the arrogant First Prince. Maybe, he just wanted someone to help him or listen to his worries. It did not seem that he had many close companions around him. Maybe, just maybe, if she helped him then he would return the favour by answering her question. '_And releasing Ikuto,_' she hoped.

Besides, to meet another Akuma no Hana… Amu had only dreamed of such an opportunity. It could serve as a lead to tracing her demon and possibly extending her contract. And perhaps, the other Akuma no Hana could tell her more about contracts with demons. After all, it was her parents that had bound her contract but if the other person had knowledge of such things the possibilities were endless.

But it would never happen if Tadase did not tell her.

"Please, Tadase," Amu implored. "I know you have reasons. And they could very well be the answers I've been searching for."

Tadase shut his eyes tight and shook his head sadly. "You don't understand," he said, his voice cracking.

"Then help me understand." Waiting for his response, Amu held her breath in anticipation. Tadase just shook his head again and she clenched her fists.

"It was my mother, Miss Amu." The breath she was holding escaped her shakily and she had to forcefully swallow down the anguish that grasped her. It was a selfish anguish that made her loathe herself. His mother obviously meant the world to him but here she was, lamenting for her own self-interested loss. "She was one of you. But it no longer matters because she's gone now." The hope that she once had died and she had to hold onto the ledge in an attempt to steady herself.

'_Don't cry,_' she told herself. It was her fault. Amu burdened the Prince with her confidence and forced him to answer. '_You brought this on yourself. No regrets. You cannot have regrets._'

It was in that tense silence that the doors burst open with a thunderous bang. Amu and Tadase both lurched at the abrupt sound, the gravity of their conversation yet to diminish. A flash of violet trundled inside, barging head-first towards the First Prince. "MASTER! Master Tadase! I finally found it!" Kiseki barged into the room, waving his hand in front of his face. The prince backed away from Amu swiftly, hiding his face from her which was flushed with a dark crimson tint on his fair skin. She spotted the redness from the way his ears coloured and felt a hint of her previous contempt chip away. "You won't believe wha–_whoa!_"

The lavender-haired genie tripped on the carpet and the ring flew out of his hand; it soared through the air and was about to fly out of the open window. Tadase stretched out and almost caught it but unfortunately for him, the ring slipped out of the grasp of his fingers.

"Mother's memento," Tadase cried, horror-stricken.

_'What?_' _At_ his strangled words, Amu's eyes widened. She looked at the window where the ring had toppled out and throwing caution to the wind in a split second decision, she climbed onto its ledge and flung herself out in hopes of catching the tiny artefact before it was too late.

Tadase had no insight of her reckless actions and was shocked to see her body fly out after the ring. "A-Amu!" He rushed to the side of where she had last been. It was too late to try and reach for her as her body plummeted before his horrified eyes.

Amu shrieked as she fell through the branches of the tree, scraping her skin against them painfully before landing onto the ground with painful thud. She groaned and hissed, slowly moving her limbs '_Luckily I managed to break my fall through the trees,_' she muttered to herself. '_But these scrapes are just as painful._' Amu hissed when she felt one sting as she flexed her arm.

The dancer could feel the smooth metal band and the gem digging in the palm of her hand and tightened her grasp on it. "Thank goodness," she murmured with relieved sigh.

'_How do I always manage to get myself in such scrapes?_' Amu trailed off as rubbed the ache in her rear end for a second before realization hit her; the ground, it seemed, was soft and squishy and… moving.

With a shrill squeal, she jumped off of whatever living thing she had fallen on. She blindly felt the thing with her hands and came upon a tiny face, huffing a warm breath of air onto the face of her hand. She quickly removed her hand with an apology. "I-I-Is that you, K-Kiseki?" She squinted her eyes and moved her face close to get a better look and was surprised with who she saw because it was most definitely not Kiseki.

'_He's different from the genie that serve's Tadase._' Though there was a small resemblance, it was plain to see that this boy was not Kiseki. He had shimmering golden eyes and messy indigo-blue hair that looked uncharacteristically like fur. He wore a pair of dark harem pants and a silken vest. However, unlike Kiseki, he didn't wear a crimson cape and golden crown. But what stood out the most was the pair of cat ears – the same colour as his hair – that adorned the top of his head.

"Of course I'm not, nya." He floated in front of her face with an indignant scowl on his kittenish face. "I am the daemon that lives in the ring. My dumb brother-" his mouth puckered into a sour expression "-is the one that lives in the lamp. He is also a daemon but he isn't as clever as I am, for sure." Amu stared at him unblinkingly, trying to keep up with his rapid chatter and constant darting around her. "You humans are really silly you know, calling us 'genies' and those other strange names, nya." Amu was about to apologize when he fluttered straight up to her, peering at her with eyes that were wide and curious like a child's. "You know, I like strange things. Did you know, human, that it is my job to serve whoever rubs that ring, nya?" She did not. How could she when she had only discovered the existence of such tiny yet powerful creatures just hours earlier? "I am called Yoru, nya. What is your name, Master?"

Amu's mind spun, trying to make sense of all of these little details. The genie – rather, the _daemon_, Yoru, descended higher up. Amu had to raise her head and narrow her eyes in the dimness to be able to see floating just above her. "Amu," she said and cleared her throat when her voice cracked. "My name is Amu. Why do you call me 'Master'?"

The face Yoru pulled looked at her as though she had asked something very stupid and Amu felt a bubble of petulance as well as gloom swell up within her. It was reminiscent of the mocking faces Ikuto would make. "Nya, are you always this slow?" Irritation coursed through her and she wondered if the people she met were just naturally crude or it was simply general misfortune on her part. "Just now, when you caught the ring, you rubbed it and I was called forth, nya. Therefore, you are my current master and I have to grant your wishes."

"Oh." Perhaps, she thought, this could work out.

"So, tell me," he said, perking up with excitement. "What is it that you wish for, nya?" She looked at the silhouetted trees in the surrounding darkness and couldn't help the fear that seeped into her mind and body. The forest loomed over her in the darkness, creating odd-looking figures and shadowy creatures that all looked to close in around her like a sinister cage.

"Umm. Let-Let's see." Her hands patted around at the ground, feeling out the several twigs and leaves that were around her. Her heart seemed to be stuttering apprehensively inside her and, consequently, her entire body was filled with tremors. She was on the verge of hyperventilating until her hand finally came across what she needed. "Th-then, could you ple-please light me a-a-a fi-fire?" Her voice was meek and her hands trembled a lot as she held up one of the broken but strong looking branch that she managed to find by her feet.

"Of course I can! Do not underestimate my abilities, nya!" She could hear the grin in his voice and with the snap of his fingers, a fire had been lit onto the large stick.

"Thank you." Amu let out the breath that she had been unconsciously holding the entire time. Like a newborn colt wobbling up onto its feet for the first time, she managed to pick herself up, with the help of the palace wall, and eventually get her knees to stop quivering.

He smiled back toothily, pleased with his handiwork. "You know, Master. You might be a little slow but you're nice and you have a smell sweet like a good person. It's a little different, but I like it a lot." Assuming it was mostly a compliment – how did one _smell_ like a good person? – Amu thanked him again, earning another grin. She decided wisely not to focus on the imbedded insult of being considered dim. "You remind me of my old Mistress. She smelled a lot like you, nya."

'_So his previous master_ _was Tadase's late mother,_' she thought sadly. In her entire life, she had never encountered another Akuma no Hana and when there was a chance to do so…

Amu sighed, hugging herself with her free arm. The tiny fire of the branch, while warm, did not provide enough heat for her entire body. The forest, for the most part, was obscured by the cloak of the night and chilly. The only relief she had was being able to see her way ahead because of the torch. Even so, only a sliver of her path was shed with light and served to make the rest look spookier by contrast.

She shivered delicately as vague and very much unwelcome memories flooded her mind.

Amu had just turned three when her parents had passed away. So, she was left in the care of a supposed family friend but being what she was, the young girl was feared and dreaded by the people around her. Eventually, the people of her town decided to lock her up in a dark and secluded building, away from the rest of the town. They rarely came to give her some food, and soon enough she was abandoned completely.

"_If other people know of this cursed child, the our village's honour will be tarnished. We absolutely can't let others know about her. We'll just have to be patient until that devil comes back and takes her heart back; at that time, she'll die soon enough anyways. Until then, she needs to be locked away. Her family's dead so it'll be easy to make it seem like she's never existed._"

"_And if we're found out?_"

"_We'll just kill her off, of course. A kid like her isn't significant._"

She remembered how her heart had wrenched from the pain and cruelty. She didn't want her life to end like that – dark and gloomy. So as soon as she found a way to escape, Amu ran out of the rotting edifice and away from the village. She ran and ran across the desert, having no idea where she was going but all she knew was that she couldn't stop. Years had passed since then, but up till now, the young girl who had trembled in fear of the dark tower she had been trapped and abandoned in still lingered in the cage of Amu's heart – just as scared, just as shaken, yet less alone and more comforted.

'_Come to think of it, that was when I met Ikuto,_' Amu mused while she strolled around the area, using the palace walls as a way to find the entrance, her hands feeling out the cold and coarse stone as her guide.

It had been a moonlit desert night and Amu was becoming weaker from her hunger and fatigue. His form was illuminated by the brilliance of the moon; he was so beautiful and mesmerizing that he had taken her breath away. She had never seen anyone like him.

She was pulled out of her stupor when she heard Yoru mewl in fright ‒ she had forgotten that he was there in the first place ‒ and felt him get closer to her. He was clinging onto her arm, his luminous gold eyes darting left and right. "Master, be careful," he stuttered at her. "I… I don't know what it is, but there's something moving towards us, nya."

Amu looked upwards, where the leaves of the trees were rustling. She lifted up her flaming torch to get a better view of whatever creature was up in the trees. However, as soon as she got a glimpse of the being, violent waves of fear surged through her in recognition of what it was. Balancing on the branch of a tree, in a stance that suggested it was ready to pounce, was a deadly predator completely unlike the usual beasts that roamed forests. It looked similar to a lion but it was much larger than any ordinary lion; with piercing blood-red eyes and two lethal serpents as its tail. Even in the surrounding darkness, Amu could clearly see its large, gleaming fangs and every razor-sharp talon – each tooth and claw looked to be the size of half of her hand.

'_A demon!_' Her mind screamed at her to get away and attempt an escape while she could, but her body didn't seem to be on the same page. Amu shuffled a couple inches back and the creature curved its mouth into a wicked smile as it gazed upon her quivering figure.

"What a delicious fragrance you evoke, Akuma no Hana. Such a beautiful scent, it arouses my hunger dreadfully. I believe you will make a wonderful feast for me." The being was no longer smiling, but bearing its teeth out for attack; in the blink of an eye, it had leapt from the high branch on the tree towards Amu.

Amu just barely managed to evade the attack and started to sprint into the thickets of the forest – with Yoru floating quickly after her – away from the devil. "Run, Master Amu! Run as fast as you can, nya!" However, the devil was not to be escaped from that easily as it ran after the pair of them effortlessly. But, Yoru spoke too soon as she stumbled face first into the ground.

"Can't you beat that creature?" She got up as quickly as she could, darting away from the swipe of the devils claws, barely by an inch. Her lungs burned from the pressure being applied on it and she panted heavily.

"Are you crazy," he panicked, having half a mind to ditch Amu – couldn't she run faster? "I'm only a tiny daemon! My rank is not high enough to face a monster like that. There's no way I could directly fight with the demon without being killed, nya."

Amu narrowly dodged another swipe the devil aimed while Yoru squawked with dread. What happened to his previous egotism of being a powerful daemon? "Can't you at least conjure up some swords for me? Or some sort of weapon? I would appreciate just about anything useful right now!"

"Yes," he said eagerly. "I can do that! Is master going to fight the demon? Good luck with that, nya." Snapping his fingers over and over again in a panic – Amu nearly cried at the thought of defective magic when he was in trouble – Yoru managed to make two swords appear from thin air and hand them to Amu.

She took in a deep breath before putting all her strength in running forward, the beast bounded after her but was thrown off when she did a sharp turn and leapt off of the trunk of a near by tree. The beast skidded to a halt before turning around to attack Amu. She brought the swords down in a single sweep but the demon knocked the weapons out of her hands, sending them flying through the air. Amu broke into a run once more; she was gasping for air and her lungs and feet felt like they were on fire. But without any weapons at hand or any other sort of defence, she had no other option.

"You cannot get away!" The beast roared after her. Amu ripped through the forest undergrowth. The branches whipped across her skin, many of them tearing her skin. Too soon, she came to a dead end clearing. Surrounded by high cliffs, boulders, and a litter of trees, Amu knew that she had no where to go now. She swerved her steps in an effort to evade the attack but the monster pounced in her path again and again and again. "Give your heart up, Akuma no Hana. I have no wish to prolong this game of chase." But before the demon brought his talons down to rip out her beating organ, he was thrown backwards.

Amu looked up expectantly, but the person she saw shocked her. "Pri–er, _Tadase_?" She had learned her lesson, and decided calling him "Prince" right now would not be the best thing to do.

"You sound surprised, Miss Amu," Tadase huffed. He got into stance as the devil picked itself up off the ground. It growled ferociously before diving towards its offender, the clash of its claws and the blonde's blade echoed around the walls of the forest. Not at all pleased by the intrusion of the prince, the devil head butted Tadase in his torso.

Tadase was knocked backwards from the force of the attack and Amu – who had been standing right behind him – was also thrown back by the force. Her body crashed violently into large boulders not far behind her and she crumpled to the ground.

Her body was numb, her befuddled mind trying to make sense of her urgency and her muscles refusing to move. She had hit her head against the rocks and it was throbbing painfully. Amu could feel a sticky wetness trickling down her face. Her vision blurred. She could no longer make out the voices shouting around her. Slowly, slowly, she was falling into that feared darkness as her eyelids drooped.

"_If anything happens, call my name. I will come for you. I will protect you._"

Amu panted as Ikuto's face swept through her thoughts and she inhaled sharply, the painful pound of her head dulling every other wound by comparison. Her lips were tremulous as she moved them weakly. The patches of black flashed in her vision and a thrumming filled her ears, as if the sound of a thousand stampeding horses galloped past her.

"-to. I-Ikuto," Amu breathed harshly before the hazy clouds took over her mind and she was swallowed into the blackness of her mind. The last thing she felt was the powerful lurch of her heart as it throbbed in her chest.

'_Ikuto, I need you_.'

****...::::~ ****Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ**** ~::::...****


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four…**

* * *

><p>"<em>Amu.<em>"

Ikuto lay with his hands behind his head as he whispered the name, eyes closed while he envisioned the beautiful girl. It was all he kept saying, repeating it like a mantra since he had been imprisoned by that imbecile that was known as the prince. He had long lost her presence in the damned place and he was feeling unfathomably irritated.

As expected, his jail cell was not the homeliest of places and was far from being even the slightest comfortable. It was made entirely of stone, save for the thick iron bars of the door. Vermin lurked in the darker shadows of the cramped space and it had a strong and putrid stench of unmentioned dying creatures, heightened by Ikuto's acute senses.

'_I wouldn't be surprised if it were the stench of long dead and rotting prisoners, trapped here all their pitiful lives by that insolent brat,_' Ikuto thought unsympathetically.

The chains on his hands from the guards were replaced by rusty prison chains but were inevitably still present. They were long enough for him to move around with; as he could probably do any sort of movement he wanted without being restricted by the useless things. The guards of the palace were undoubtedly foolish as was their prince – that much was for sure.

Ikuto's thoughts strayed back to the pink haired dancer once more, making him forget about the disgusting smell of the place. Though he didn't exactly fancy thinking about it, he could feel himself grow angry at the thought of Amu being harmed in any way. Naturally, Amu had never been a woman who was weak and couldn't defend herself – she was more than apt at wielding swords, better than any of the guards in the palace, he knew – still she was a human. Amu was still a woman who was stuck with an irrational and senseless prince, as well as surrounded by other covetous males.

He felt himself give a low growl as he recalled what the blonde had said before: "_Become my woman... my temporary mistress._" Ikuto would never hesitate to draw blood if worst had come to worst – no one could touch Amu.

_'If he lays a finger on Amu, that obtuse prince can count himself dead._' Ikuto clenched his fists.

Suddenly, he felt a familiar shock in his chest and he sat up quickly, his hand over that permanently-cold part of his body. He blinked twice to get his mind straight so he could centre out the feeling again.

"Oi, oi. Stay put, wise-guy. Don't try anythin' funny." His eyebrows creased at the intrusion of the sudden voice. He had forgotten all about the guard standing outside his cell, but only ignored him. His mind was still occupied by what he had felt in that one instant: fear. And it wasn't his.

'_Where are you, Amu?_' His eyes slowly closed and instantly the image of the radiant dancing girl appeared; her face was smiling brilliantly, like it always did. Another shock went through his chest.

_"-to."_ He could feel pounding within his empty chest. Facing the back wall of the prison chamber, Ikuto rose to his feet. He closed his eyes in concentration and focused on the beating inside of him; it was becoming faster and faster as they seconds flew by.

"Oi, what're ya doin'?"

_"I-"_ He could feel it; the force of her life, her scent, her presence.

"'Ey, you! Listen to me!" But Ikuto took no notice of the guard's shouts.

_"Ikuto."_

His eyes shot open as he felt the thump that sent his nerves into a frenzy, making his energy pulse through his empty veins. He knew what it was, that single source of life that belonged to three: her, him, and _them_. It did not matter where it was because its presence filled up the cistern of his force and caused it to flood. Lips curling into a lethal smile, an earthquake-like rumble shook the palace. His body was lifted into the air and waves of power coursed around him in a bright cocoon of light.

Rumbles and screaming filled the once silent night. "Wh-what's going on," one guard shouted in alarm, backing away from prison cell as he watched what was once a mere prisoner of the prince transform into something bigger and unimaginably treacherous.

Azure hair now much longer, it flowed in the currents of his power. His usually serene midnight eyes were a deep crimson, like freshly spilt blood. His perfect white teeth became fangs whose sharpness froze the blood of prey and his nails grew into deadly claws capable of ripping through sinew and steel. On his head were furry blue ears that looked like those of cat's, along with a long, flicking tail. Sapphire vine-like markings decorated his pale skin. On the centre of his sculpted chest, was an intricate mark. Like a blooming rose, blackened and with weaving swirls and thorns. Ikuto had at long last morphed into his true form: a Demon.

In the midst of his transformation, the links that bound the cuffs together had broken from the force of his energy so he was free of any burden. His sharp eyes looked out the bars of the windows into the moonlit sky while his ears picked up every single sound in search of her. He could feel the beat of the heart and her fragrance now spiked his nose.

A mixture of her usual flowery scent and the thick essence of blood – the smell unfurled his blind rage and the electricity around him stemmed, loud snaps of the currents prickling the air about him. He had felt the brief flash of hurt and he could see from her heart the indistinct image of a sparking darkness. Still, the pungent scent of blood was strongest amongst his many senses.

"Found her," he murmured silkily.

Ikuto focused all of his power into the palm of his hand and lightly placed his hand onto the brick wall. Barely having made contact, the wall burst into bits of rubble and rocks to create a gaping hole that lead into the thickets surrounding the palace. Then, in a flash, Ikuto made his way to Amu, ultimately vanishing in the wind. Left long behind him, the prison guards stood rooted in place, shaking in fear by what they had just witnessed and thanking fate for having their lives spared by the ruthless creature that had gone as quickly as it had come.

Ikuto did not care to settle retributions with the mangy humans as he had only one purpose: following the scent of blood akin to his own.

* * *

><p>"Master? Amu? <em>Amu!<em> You need to wake up, nya!" Yoru pleaded, shaking his new master desperately. To no avail did the dancer regain her consciousness. Beside her, Tadase groaned as tried to get back onto his feet. Unsheathing his sword, he used it as a support and rose to his feet.

"Damn it, that beast," the prince hissed, holding his throbbing head with one hand.

In the clearing of trees across from the three, the demon prowled about. Slowly and predatorily, it slinked their way. Yoru began to panic, wishing that the demon would somehow miraculously disappear or that he had enough power to defeat the beast and save his master.

'_How could this happen? How do I save her?_' He tugged at her outfit, now tattered from what had happened to her, in an attempt to somehow drag her away. '_I just met my master and now we're in danger. Fate is so ruthless._'

Suddenly, Yoru felt an unexpected chill swoop down on the air and a sense of foreboding went through him. He shivered and as Tadase shivered in turn, he knew that he wasn't the only one to feel it. That was when the little daemon felt it.

"This presence…" Yoru whipped his head up only to stare, fear stricken. Tadase mimicked Yoru's actions behind him, his fist tightening around the hilt.

Night time made the forest, surrounded by its many staggering mountains, a sinister place – even more so when one was within the thickets. Yet there, standing on the hilt of the cliff above them, was a dark silhouette that would have caused fright regardless the circumstance. It was visible by a moon that shone against a vast, black screen, impossible to discern by its profile. However, it was the sight of two scarlet gleams, like tiny red embers, that made their blood drain. It stood above them, unmoving, simply watching. Every step they took back was mirrored above them. Tadase was sure that the creature could sense every bead of sweat that rolled down his skin; every shaking breath he took was heard by it; and that it found great pleasure in his horror. A horror that was found not by sight, but through an aura of petrifying power and danger that it sent through all it came across.

"Wh-what is that?" Gripping his sword securely, he stood as a shield in front of Amu. He had to protect her at any cost. Whatever it was, he assumed it to be incredibly strong since the demon's attention was now focused on it instead them.

'_Unquestionably, this monster is a greater threat._' Tadase found himself unable to swallow, terror bobbing thick in his throat.

"One of the Noble Demons," Yoru said with hushed and fearful awe. He was rooted to his spot and drained of colour, his breathing shallow. "But it can't be, nya. How could… how could it be here?"

Tadase did not understand. "What do you mean?"

Half-way through his question, Yoru had already begun whispering an answer. "Born from black lightening and darkness, they feed on vengeance and terror in ways different from regular demons. Their interactions with inferior life-forms are seldom and yet, they prey on fear. Their markings are distinct and their power palpable." With widened eyes, it seemed Yoru was in a manic stupor and it alarmed the prince. "They are legendary and infamous, capable of bringing destruction to all that they lay their eyes upon. Magical rank places them as the most notorious of creatures and warning upon anyone who crosses their path and–"

"We don't have time for this nonsense," Tadase hissed at Yoru. He regretted asking as the dread inflated in his gut. He could no longer bring himself to look at the horrendous monster. It was imperative that they make their escape while they could. But it would be impossible without Yoru's help and he was still spouting ancient knowledge without end. "Snap out of it this instant! Your new mistress is in danger, isn't she?" This effectively woke up the creature.

"Right, nya." He knew right away that Tadase had not figured out the identity of the ferocious creature. The smell that came from the Noble Demon's currents of power was the same as the one that Amu, between her own scent, exuded in bursts.

'_Escape is impossible, nya._'

Meanwhile, Ikuto had scrutinized the scene bellow him with cold eyes and what he saw did not please him. Amu was down there, unconscious and bleeding. Of course, the stupid prince from earlier was down there, along with another genie, however their presences were negligible. Amu was injured and that was all it took to place his final verdict.

"You meddled with that girl." It was a whisper that scuttled across the valley, carrying effortlessly through the ears of every living creature present in ways that rippled violent shudders. On the ground, the inferior demon bared its teeth in sheer ignorance and naivety of its opponent. It failed to faze the Noble Demon.

"And what if I did?" Ikuto's eyes narrowed. In a single leap, he soared over the heads of those below him and landed directly behind the now-terrified beast. The monster spun around, roaring at Ikuto – the fright in its glowing eyes as clear as day. Still, the Noble was not slighted or even mildly concerned, leisurely circling his prey.

"You dared to lay your filthy paws on one of my possessions." He raised his own hand, the clear jingling sound of the cuff and its broken link – still around his wrist – pierced the air, contrasting against the treacherously airy tone of his voice. "Now, you will pay with your life."

Voice laced with venom and promises of no return, he brought his claws down on the creature in front of him mercilessly. Tadase jerked backwards in fright as the blood spurted out and Yoru looked upon the sight with horrified eyes. Fleshy tatters of what would be indescribable as a living creature littered the floor, a pool of blood glistening under the sinister silver of the moon. Already, a powerful rotting stench came from the mangled corpse. Both Tadase and Yoru slapped hands over their faces in disgust, noses burning and eyes tearing up. As fate would have it, Amu was out for the count. The unsightly display of the demon, that was now gone for good, was stomach churning and gruesome.

Broken from his stupor, Tadase slowly stared at the expressionless visage of the so-called Noble Demon before him. He looked down and blinked in astonishment when he noticed the broken cuffs and clothing on the demon that stood before him. He pieced everything that happened together and got up on his feet in a flash, hand slowly inching to the hilt of his sword. The smell of the demon's bloody carcass was no longer of the essence.

"You… You're… that–from earlier–you're the musician?"

Ikuto said nothing, remaining as calm and collected as ever. Averting his eyes from the blonde, he looked at the blood trickling down his arm uninterestedly before tentatively licking some of the blood from his wrist. He cast a sideways glance at the appalled prince and genie and smirked darkly. Yoru shivered uncontrollably; he had never felt so scared in his entire lifespan of a few thousand years.

"How ridiculous," Ikuto muttered to himself before speaking in a slightly louder voice. "Why don't you tell me, _Kiddy King_." Tadase scowled at the name, but the fear radiating from him was undeniable.

"Why is a demonic being protecting an Akuma no Hana?" He demanded of the creature that stood before him.

"I realized that the idiocy in you was stronger and stiffer than most humans, but I did not think you would be a complete fool," he said, more to himself than the others. Ikuto could sense the prince's disbelief and it made him want to scoff. "Is it not already obvious?"

Ikuto's look lingered on the boy for a few seconds before he walked towards him. Tadase gripped his sword and prepared to bring it up in defence. The Prince was taken aback when the demon simply glided past him. Yoru drew backwards, his lungs constricting, thinking that Ikuto was coming for him. However, his nervousness ebbed once he saw that Ikuto was not targeting him.

Instead, the Noble Demon knelt down and gently drew the unconscious girl into his arms – having already pulled his claws back in – her head rested in the arch of his neck. He warmly kissed her on the forehead and ran his fingers delicately through her long tresses. Tadase looked on with wide, disbelieving eyes.

"This girl," Ikuto paused for a moment, eyes searching the insentient face against him. "Amu is borrowing my life." The identical mark on his chest gleamed noticeably, even in the darkness of the night. "All of what she feels – her joy, her pain, her sadness – all of it is conveyed to me through the heart which she has borrowed. She is what you humans call my 'flower.' Since she's the 'flower', I am the vessel that keeps her alive: her 'leaf.'"

His hard eyes met the shaken eyes of Tadase, never blinking as he passed his message and threat on to the naïve human: '_She belongs to me._' His hold on her tightened possessively and he challenged any of the two before him to defy his words – the two were not unintelligent enough to do so. Still, he looked at the young prince with a look of warning before answering his unspoken question.

"Once a contract has been exchanged, no matter what the reason, you cannot escape from it. That is why it would be troublesome if she is not alive until the day I get my heart back." Tadase was rendered speechless. He watched as the creature that posed as a seemingly innocent musician arose, with Amu cradled in his arms, and vanished into the night.

Minutes past and Tadase, unable to hold himself up any longer, leant against the same boulder Amu once lay motionless under. With horror, his memory repeated the way Ikuto had simply taken Amu; the way Tadase did not fight for her safety; how easily Tadase had let the girl be taken by her ruthless executioner. Helplessness and shame coursed through him for a second time. Tadase threw his sword to the side and buried his hands into his hair. Royal clothes tattered and dirty, he punched and kicked at the ground, unable to keep from crying and screaming with resentment for both at himself and the treacherous demon.

_How could he have just abandoned her? How could he have let another person go? Had he not learned from his loss?_

Yoru, just as ashamed, quietly sat and listened to Tadase roar and kick with wrath. Minutes quickly passed into hours and orange light licked the sky. Still, the unspoken threat permeated the atmosphere around both the Daemon and the Prince.

'_She belongs to me._' The world was a cruel and unfair place.

**...::::~ ****Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ**** ~::::...**


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

* * *

><p>The sun was not very high, but its rays beat down upon the land with the same intensity as it did during high-noon. Not a cloud marred the too-blue sky as far as the eye could see. On the ground, apart from the endless corridors of sandy terrain, there was a smattering of shrubbery and, when she was lucky, some pink and purple flowers could be spotted. It helped that she was given a higher perspective from the back of her camel; albeit the constant bobbing was distracting.<p>

"You know, I'm still a little surprised to be in one piece. No one really told me what happened after." Amu turned to Ikuto eagerly, hoping that he would tell her. A questionable smirk played on his lips.

After waking up in an unexpectedly pleasant chamber on top of an even more pleasant bed, Amu had been astounded to find herself well and alive. Kiseki had entered, after knocking at the entrance, and simply said the previous charges against her and Ikuto had been lifted by the Prince and that they were free to leave. She thanked him and tried to ask what had happened but he disappeared so quickly, Amu was given no time to think about how fluidly the avoided her eyes. Instead, she was ushered down to a stable, reunited with Ikuto, and then given the supplies that would ensure her hasty departure. All of it before breakfast!

"Actually, it's thanks to Tadase." His smirk widened further, it was his first time calling the blonde by his name and it took all of his self-control to not go with "Kiddy King" – he would do at least that much for Amu. "His strength and Yoru's magic beat the demon." Truth be told, even the Noble Demon had difficulty saying that with a straight face.

Yoru squeaked at his mention and almost fell out of the air in mid-float. The three of them were travelling with the hopes of finding a new village, having left the Seiyo Village for good it seemed. Before they left, Yoru had insisted he travel along with Amu as she had unknowingly made a contract with him as his Master. Happy to have another companion, Amu welcomed the little daemon with open arms – Ikuto, with his glowering and intimidation, not so much.

"But, Your Nobility—" Behind Amu, Ikuto turned his eyes towards the little daemon. Affected simply by his stare, Yoru felt like bursting into tears. For the first time he did not want attention and yet it was thrust upon him without his consent. Ikuto was immensely terrifying, even without being in his demon form. "N-N-No. Uhh…Th-th-that Prince is a rather good swordsman, I suppose." But as Amu looked at Yoru with appraising eyes, shining with pride, his words became trapped in his throat. Even though it has been a short amount of time, he really loved his master and could not disappoint her. "And, umm, I-I guess we got lucky. Somewhat."

The daemon laughed nervously, sneaking a glance at Ikuto for approval. His words sounded like more of a question but, Yoru thought, as long as Ikuto did not kill him off he would rather lie to live. Amu (and his own survival) were worth it. After a long and hard stare, the masked demon turned his attention back on Amu and the daemon could finally breathe again.

Ikuto kept a pointed look on his face, wondering why such a nuisance decided to tag along and why Amu had allowed it. Although he had made his threat clear, he did not trust the daemon from opening it's big mouth. Still, he did not want to look at Yoru again so he decided to keep his own mouth shut and his claws tucked away.

'_For now, anyways._'

"Then I am thankful for your fortune. Truthfully, I didn't think you had it in you but I'm glad you proved me wrong, Yoru. Thank you." She ran a finger across his cheek softly and Yoru, less guilty and more satisfied by the affectionate gesture, floated down onto the space in front of Amu. He purred when she scratched him behind his ears.

'_I think I could get used to lying,_' he thought giddily, between purrs and content mewls. Ikuto earnestly considered feeding the pesky daemon to the camel.

"But, that Tadase," Amu's thoughtful tone provoked Ikuto's attention from the furry tag-along. "I suppose, among his negative qualities he still has many positive attributes. I think, if he tries, he could grow to be a good leader for the kingdom." Yoru snorted at the unlikely prospect. He might have kept to the ring but there was no ignoring the blonde's outbursts and pompous laughter. It was too much like his annoying brother's pretentious manners.

Ikuto, on the other hand, was thinking less about the Prince and more about the girl with him. With a tone filled with disinterest yet touched the borders of uneasiness and made Yoru want to (not that he had the courage to) snicker, Ikuto asked, "Have you taken a liking to that Kiddy King?" The rose-haired teenager blushed deeply and swivelled around to gawk at Ikuto. Had Ikuto not been holding onto her from behind, she would have fallen right off. "To think you preferred weak and spineless pretty-boys."

"What? No, don't be ridiculous. Of course I don't," she denied hotly. Ikuto snorted in disbelief. Amu gawked and spluttered with indignation. "I am being honest, you know! I was simply upset by his actions at the beginning but he proved that there was more to him. It would be wrong of me to judge him after he helped me. And you," she seethed, when Ikuto showed no signs of relenting his scorn. "Didn't you say that he was strong just a moment ago?"

"I would think you to have better preferences. Even if you do have a flat chest," he added, a wolfish smirk tugging his lips.

He was expecting a punch or a pinch from the fuming dancer, perhaps being pushed off of their ride ‒ anything that served to hurt him. Instead, the unexpected hug he received baffled him so much, he almost let go of the camel's reins. He was so stunned Ikuto hardly noticed how Yoru snickered at his expense.

"You're impossible," she growled into his shoulder, squeezing him tightly around the middle. He could feel the heat of her breath against his neck and it sent ripples up his spine. "And even though what you said is _completely false_, I… I'm just glad that you're okay," she whispered. Another ripple scuttled up his back and an arm automatically wrapped her when he felt the burn of her cheeks and moist droplets on his skin. "I'm so relieved you came back. Without you, I… I just…"

"I understand," he said softly and she nodded, exhaling shakily.

He was looking forward, but all he could concentrate was the smell of her hair with his nose buried into it and his fingers softly woven through her locks. Yoru, whose snickering had died down, was pointedly looking ahead. His face was heating up and he very nearly forgot that the man just behind him was not actually a man but a dangerous demon with the potential to wipe out the entire population of the Arabian desert.

When she withdrew, Amu looked up at him with a reddened nose and cross eyes. "Don't ever leave me like that," she said seriously. Then, her frown deepened and she pounded her fist against his chest. "And my chest is _not_ small!"

Smirking lazily, Ikuto was about to retort when Yoru piped, "Master Amu! Look over there, nya!" Again, he forgot about the pesky daemon that was with them and, grudgingly, he looked out to where the pest was pointing excitedly. Amu looked out more eagerly, completely distracted and a wide grin on her face at the sight of the town in the distance.

"This is great! We can have breakfast sooner than I hoped." She shared her glee with Yoru, the two exchanging cheeky grins. "And after that, we'll go out so we can earn money for lunch! I want to eat something scrumptious!" Ikuto could only scoff silently at her easily distracted disposition and penchant for eating opportunities. He should have known better.

Just as Ikuto pulled the reins of the camel and halted the animal to a stop, Amu leapt down onto the sand. She giggled as Yoru, floating ahead of her, sent the funny-faced camel a nasty look when it rutted the daemon in the back. Following the two of them slowly, he watched as Amu plucked Yoru out of the air and carried him in her arms like the large stuffed dolls they sometimes saw in the markets in the arms of toothy children, much to Yoru's struggles and protests – not that Amu cared.

Observing the both of their carefree behaviour, Ikuto wondered whether if, in all the years they spent together, Amu ever felt lonely. He knew that it was not in his nature to be extremely talkative and while they frequently bantered between themselves, he had never expressly considered whether she wanted to spend time with other people – _real_ humans. The thought made him frown. Did she hide her solitude, even from him? Did she ever want to have lasting companionships as most humans did? And now that she _did_ have some respite in another playmate, was it enough for her – taking into consideration that it was (ironically enough) another daemon?

Ikuto watched her intently for a long time, musing over the way he guarded Amu. He cast small smile as the girl twirled around with Yoru, her airy robe and lengthy fuchsia locks whirling behind her. Amu's smile shone brighter than the sun, more precious and dazzling than any gemstone. She seemed happy enough to him. Then, his heart ached as he thought of the future, unable to imagine what would happen if that laughing face disappeared. What would become of the world? Moreover, what would become of him?

"Ikuto!" Amu grinned at him, tightly clutching a rather green Yoru to her chest. Perhaps, he thought in amusement, it was better that she exhaust non-humans than humans – who were already too weak to begin with. "Are you going to just stand there or are you coming?"

Busy with his ruminations, he did not realize that he stopped walking – though apparently the camel did, as it had decided to fold its legs, sit down, and stare at the preoccupied man dispassionately. Tugging the reins forward, the animal blew a puff of air at finally walking again and Ikuto rolled his eyes at the lower species – sometimes, besides their appearances, he saw no difference between animals and humans.

"So slow," Yoru complained under his breath when he finally caught up with them. The tiny daemon promptly shut his mouth, however, when Ikuto's eyes travelled to him. It was still too soon for him to poke fun at the taciturn Noble Demon.

Amu only shook her head sheepishly and took hold of Ikuto's hand, lacing their fingers together. Regardless of what happened yesterday, she was very chipper now. It almost felt as though she had something akin to a family now. '_I hope we find my demon, soon._' Ikuto squeezed her hand gently, though his face did not betray a single emotion, and Amu glanced at him with a tender smile – she would never put it past him to read her thoughts.

'_You cannot be too attached to me, Amu._' The Noble Demon's thoughts, however, were much gloomier than those of his flower. '_I will only make your heart hurt in the end…_'

"You know," Amu said, pulling Ikuto out of his thoughts again. She looked down at the Daemon she held wryly. "I realized I could have saved myself a lot of trouble if I just wished to be back in the palace and wished Ikuto out of the prison."

"Perhaps," Yoru said. He grinned up at her cheekily. "But you didn't because you're just that slow and thick-headed like that, nya." This time, even Ikuto couldn't hold it against himself to not ignore at what the frisky genie had said, smirking at the way Amu flushed with indignation.

Her smile strained and she all but squeezed the life out of the tiny creature in her arms. "My, my. You certainly are a bold little genie," she crooned silkily. Yoru spluttered and choked, trying to wriggle his way out of her strangling grip. Then, letting go of Ikuto, Amu pinched and pulled his furry cheek, making the daemon blubber in agony. "To think this same mouth that begged to come along is insulting its master."

"Naht ah jhe-_eee_nie, nhyah," he wailed before slipping out of and away from her arms. He rubbed the sore flesh woefully, pouting in her direction. "And even if you did wish that at the time, it could not have come true."

Amu frowned deeply, finished extracting her revenge on the tiny creature. "Why not?"

"Because teleportation magic is hard to do even on my own, nya," Yoru shrugged. Amu raised her eyebrows dubiously, fully aware that Yoru would have used any and every means necessary to prove his greatness – especially if it meant outdoing his brother and Tadase's daemon, Kiseki. She stared at him dryly, waiting for the full truth and seeing that he would not get out of the question that easily, his shoulders slumped. Yoru grumbled with his arms crossed mulishly. "And I may not have enough rank to fulfil it when there are others," he muttered, not meeting Amu's gaze.

Though Amu might not have been one to taunt a disheartened Yoru, Ikuto by no means had a guilty conscience towards the latter. "Useless," he muttered. Amu elbowed him in the ribs.

"**_I am not, nya!_**"

* * *

><p>The new town they went to was relatively large and mostly peaceful. So far, there was no telling whether they had knowledge of Akuma No Hana. Regardless, Amu made sure to keep her cloak on as they strolled through the bazaar and paid for a room in the local inn. There was not much to take to their room – Ikuto and Amu both had few belongings to travel about with: Amu's dance costumes, some change of clothes, iron cookware, their blankets, and in a rucksack were smaller knick-knacks. All of it was easily carried up to the room in one trip and after leaving their camel at the inn's stable, they headed off for the town. Their breakfast had consisted simply of dates and milk, so Amu was itching to earn enough for a more filling lunch – and perhaps, if she was lucky, she would have enough to buy sweet treats.<p>

She pulled Ikuto along impatiently, hounding him about having his lute prepared and his fingers ready. As for Yoru, after making sure that he would stay in a more human-disguise and not scare off anyone by floating about, he had been given the job of collecting the money. Amu had also commanded him to make himself appear cuter and more feeble than usual ("_I'm not feeble, nya!_") so that people would be more generous out of pity. According to Amu, each of them had to attract a certain amount of attention and while she would be doing most of the work, that even Ikuto was assigned to be "more artful and enigmatic" according to her – provided he keep his mouth shut and eyes down.

Thus, for about three days, Amu and Ikuto entertained the masses as Yoru went about collecting gold coins in a patched hat, pouting and smiling at the women who cooed at him as they generously dropped their money down with a resounding clunk. Just as Amu had promised, she was able to acquire enough money for better meals and once, she had even bought a sugary pastry. Excitedly, she had split the sweet into three to share with both her companions.

Curiously, Yoru had observed this sharing unfold (while quickly finishing off his own slice) when Ikuto complained about being full from dinner and having too big of a piece. In Yoru's eyes, the piece looked about the same in size as the others. He suggested that Amu take half from him and in response, Amu took the entire sweet and shoved it into his mouth with a rather scary smile on her face. She scolded him about not wasting food and being ungrateful for what they had managed to attain. All in all, it looked like one big farce with Yoru as the sole spectator. Ikuto was obviously trying to make Amu happier by letting her have his share yet Amu refused to enjoy such treats without him.

It was so natural and human that he almost forgot what his purpose for being there was. Not quite, but almost.

"_Protect Miss Amu from that monster. That is an order._" That was the last thing Tadase had said to the little genie. "_I don't trust him. Disguising himself as her partner and then travelling with her while he is a devil. He's tricking her into falling in love with him and then he's just going to eat her heart in the end. What a pointless existence._"

Tadase told him that he would send someone to check on three of them every so often and search for a way to save Amu from the demon's clutches. And if needed, they would try to exterminate Ikuto before he could do so to Amu – Yoru shivered at such a thought. Were his new master and her zealous 'protector' to find out about such plots as well as Yoru's reason for tagging along, he was sure as dead. Regardless, Yoru suspected that somehow, the Noble Devil was already aware of this and willingly allowed the daemon to stay. After all, it was not a testing chore for him to kill the feeble daemon.

Yoru looked over his shoulder at the place where Ikuto was seated, strumming his lute while Amu twirled around him charmingly. Looks were deceiving, he knew. Ikuto, who looked a regular human being right now, could just as easily be a ruthless murderer. But with Amu, he was noticeably different – in a good way. And Yoru enjoyed being with them (even the Noble Devil). Life was fun and they were nice to him (_even the Noble Devil, in his own cruel way_). Their spats were amusing and it felt as though he finally had a family.

But what would happen when Amu was killed? What would happen when Ikuto took his heart back? Would he kill him as well and move on, as though nothing had ever occurred?

His thoughts were disrupted when he was suddenly bumped into by a person behind him and tripped, face flat in the dirt. Groaning and sorely wishing he could float above the crowd to avoid such shunts, he got up and spit out the grimy sand. Whipping his head to get a good look at the person who made him lose his footing – he would have vengeance! – Yoru felt his nerves bristle when the boy continued to run through the throngs of people.

"Watch where you're going, nya!" He would never have gone through this if he was in his daemon form.

Yoru already knew that most humans were clumsy oafs – except his Masters, who were always leading examples of good grace – but how could they just brush off the damage they did without even an apology? '_Talk about being rude. Let's see how much he likes it when _he_ trips and eats dirt!_'

Sneaking off the duty of coin-collecting for a moment, Yoru watched the boy rush towards a lady selling flowers. With a smirk and the flick of a hand, Yoru caused the boy to tumble over against nothingness and land on his front with a painful thump. His glasses flew off and the daemon cackled evilly as the boy fumbled around with his hands before he found them again.

The lady selling flowers gave him a hand and with a bright red face, the boy attempted to straighten himself out while asking to buy some flowers. Pleased with his mischief, Yoru stalked back to his job and began collecting coins again. While one man was trying to fish a coin out of his trousers, Yoru watched Amu dance. She was very good at it and her smile was very pretty, he thought. Plus, Ikuto was not bad at playing the lute either. The girl whirled on her toes, the gestures of her arms becoming intricate and quick with the music as the small bells on her costume jingled to the rhythm of her footwork. After one last leap and spiral, she finished her performance with a pose.

The people clapped and those closest to her dropped several coins in the bag at Ikuto's feet. Today, Amu had said to Yoru during breakfast, would be their last day in the town. Using what they had of profit, they would by enough food to last them a week on the road before they went to another village. Ecstatic with the results, Amu bowed and smiled radiantly. Yoru snickered when she walked over to Ikuto, the bells at her feet tinkling with each step, and forced him to his feet to also bow (stiffly) to the audience.

Yoru was surprised to notice that also at the front, with a dazed expression on his face, was the boy with the lop-sided glasses that tripped him. It was then that he remembered that this boy was also at every other performance of Amu, returning over and over to the square to gaze with flushed awe. This time, with flowers as rosy as his face, he seemed to be mustering up the courage to present them to her.

The boy walked up to her while the people clapped and Amu looked at him in surprise. "U-Um, hello… if you wouldn't mind, p-please accept these as-as-as a token of, erm, my a-admiration."

Although he would probably have been better off giving the money he used to buy the flowers in the first place. '_The only way to win my master's heart is with food. Or be Ikuto,_' Yoru thought with a smirk.

Amu's face coloured and she looked at the boy just as shyly as he held the flowers up to her, arms trembling. Taking the beautiful flowers in her hand, she tipped her head and thanked him with a smile. Choking up on his words, the boy bowed his head as well, turned around on his heels, and stalked off with as much dignity as he could gather with his lop-sided glasses.

"What is this commotion, what's going on?" The crowds cheering and exuberance died down. They parted slowly, with loud murmurs, to make way for a surly looking man in a patched-robe carrying a large staff. He hobbled close and looked to where Ikuto and Amu were standing, Yoru just behind them. From what they could see, he was the town's head.

"Elder Kazuomi," one person addressed him. "We were watching these wanderers performance is all."

"Yes, I heard about them." His eyes narrowed at the person that spoke and he turned away from the man. "I did not make much of their visit when I first heard but I decided that I should also take a look when I heard something that rather disturbed me." Using his staff, he shuffled to the front until he stood before a nervous Amu and scrutinized her with aversion.

He was hunched and stood above her by only the length of a thumb, yet Amu looked small under his gaze and Yoru silently walked over behind her, away from the sight of the old man. '_I have a bad feeling about this, nya._'

"What is your name," he asked with hard eyes.

"I-I… My name is Amu Hinamori," she said, licking her lips anxiously.

He hummed indifferently and then, in curt voice he asked, "Did you plan to burn this village to the ground? Curse us in the same way you are cursed?"

Amu clamped her hand onto Ikuto's wrist, who was looking particularly wound up, and shook her head vehemently. "No, we never—" he held a hand up in silence.

"Then leave now and let this town see peace. We do not give hospitality to filth," he hissed, taking a step closer. Reflexively, Amu took a step back as she clutched Ikuto tight. Yoru hung onto the back of her legs. "These naïve people have already bestowed you wanderers with generosity and while they still have their lives and humanity intact, remove yourselves from our home." He looked between the two of them with revulsion and turned on his heels.

"But, what of—" Amu started.

"I said leave!" He swung his staff at her and Ikuto snarled, grabbing the staff out of his hand and flinging it aside. In shock, the old man fell over onto his back and some villagers quickly rushed up to help him over. Others, alarmed by such an escalation in tension quickly dispersed, ushering children with them quickly as they glanced over their shoulders suspiciously. Shaking as he got back on his feet, the Elder looked at the scattering people with satisfaction. "That's right! Go home, while you are still uncorrupted by filth that lives by exchanging her flesh and blood with the devil!"

He chanced a look back at Ikuto again and his eyes widened when he saw the musician's eyes flicker red. Again, he stumbled on his feet and slapped away the hands that tried to help him. Frantically, the Elder pointed and cried about malicious spirits, grabbing the people nearest to him and shaking them wildly. The people, suspicious of Amu and Ikuto, also looked unnerved by the old man's peculiar behaviour.

'_He's seen too much,_' Ikuto thought darkly. He knew it was his own fault for not reigning himself back however instinct forced through the cracks of his disguise when Amu was in danger. Briefly he considered killing the man but with his flower at his side, to do so would risk her finding out the truth of his nature. Plus, he would not leave her on her own for even a second to take care of one measly pest.

"—to curse us with unholy spirits! There are devils among us! Listen to me! There are devils here! _I saw them!_" The villagers ignored his words and actions, nodding along only in wary humour as they tried to have him calm down. Practically dragging him on his feet while he fumbled around, not wanting to see their pitiful faces, they told him that they would walk him home.

Amu watched, shaken to her core, as he tried to turn around over and over to yell at them. She looked over her shoulder at Yoru. The daemon was staring after the man with uneasiness and flinched in surprise when her hands ran over the top of his head, scratching him gently behind the ears. Meeting her gaze, he read her eyes and nodded sadly in answer to his master's silent wish before vanishing into thin air. Feeling the warmth of the ring, Amu knew that Yoru was back inside. Then she turned to Ikuto and, only able to meet his eyes for a second, dropped her gaze again. The hand that still held onto his wrist tightly relaxed and slipped down to weave their fingers together. Looking down at their joined hands, Ikuto flexed his and squeezed hers without a word.

"Let's-" Amu paused when her voice cracked and took a deep breath to clear her throat. "Let's get out of here." As she took a step and her legs buckled underneath her; quick to react, Ikuto held her steady. Letting their hands go, he wound his arms around her and picked her up by her knees. Amu's arms wound around his neck, clutching onto her lifeline tightly.

No matter the coldness of the world, Ikuto always made up for it with his warmth.

**...::::~ ****Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ**** ~::::...**


	7. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six...**

"Now that people in this village know, we shouldn't stay here much longer."

"Ugh. No need to remind me." Ikuto placidly smirked at her tone, but Amu could see that it did not reach his eyes. They were hiding in an alley for the time being; having already evacuated the room they had rented at an inn and taken their camel with them, they now needed to figure a way out of the town without attracting too much attention from the village's residents. "Devils may soon hear of the rumours spreading around and come to attack you, to take your heart." Amu gingerly touched the blooming mark on her chest before sighing heavily.

"I know. Well, according to our previous planning, we _were_ going to earn more money in this town for our journey. Yet," Amu turned to look at Ikuto's bored expression. "Financially speaking, we're in big trouble. I mean sure, we could camp out so we wouldn't have to worry about lodging fees, but the main problem is the food! We have no money to buy anything to eat, we can't just eat the sand from the desert!" Instinctively her hands went up to the roots of her hair.

"Careful, there. You're going to end up in a lot of pain if you actually pull all that out." If she could, Amu would have ripped it all out by now and in her hysteria, she didn't hear his mockery at all. He quirked an eyebrow as he watched what could become a mentally deranged Amu rambling nonsense to herself.

"Ah! I wonder if we can buy a few loaves of bread and a tiny bit of cheese with it if we sell a few of my dancing costumes."

"It's alright you know," Ikuto's face was still expressionless as he watched Amu flail around in hysterics. "There are snakes and lizards in the area."

"No! Not only is that gross but I'll go crazy if I have to eat reptiles!"

"Too late for that," the musician remarked dryly.

She gave him a withering look. "This isn't the time for jokes, Ikuto!"

"I never said it was." She growled at his retort, not that it manifested a difference in him.

"There aren't even any near by rivers or something for fish. Plus, I want to eat something normal once in a while you know!" Amu shook Ikuto by the shoulders desperately, his face was still bland. Finally, Amu was struck with a brilliant idea. Smiling maniacally, she rubbed the ring on her finger and within a second Yoru popped out.

"It's about time, nya! I was scared you'd forgotten all about me!" He cried indignantly, arms crossed and a pout on his face.

"Sorry," Amu giggled nervously before her hyperactivity came back. "You said that you'd conjure up anything I wanted, right? Well, I was wondering whether you could conjure up something with a golden colour that makes a 'clang-clang' sound, hmm…?" Ikuto scoffed at her sugar-coated voice, she smiled like she was in immense pain. Yoru floated down to her face excitedly.

"Of course I can, nya!" Yoru said proudly, his nose in the air. Amu cheered and hugged Yoru tightly. "However," Amu froze at the word. "My magic only lasts for five minutes, nya. So in other words, even if I do make it appear; it'll only disappear in an instant later, nya." He explained with a sheepish smile.

"Only _five_ minutes! Why?" She exclaimed dramatically to the sky, ogling blue-furred genie tearily. It wasn't fair for her to have to struggle so much – why was fate so cruel to her?

"You're so useless." Ikuto said monotonously to the genie. Yoru looked back at him in shock and moved away to brood over the comment that replayed over and over in his head. Recovering over her shock, she glowered at Ikuto who merely shrugged indifferently. With kind eyes, she gazed at her brooding kitten; Amu pulled the little genie into her arms and kissed the top of his head tenderly.

"You are **not** useless, Yoru." Her face was downcast as she scratched him behind the ears, her sadness making the genie's own ears flop down forlornly. "I'm sorry, I'm not being very considerate, am I?" She smiled sadly.

'_It's not fair on them at all, having to be stuck with a creature like me._'

"It's just that facing this reckless journey…I…I just want to search for my devil from that time, no matter what. Before the day when I have to return his heart to him, I want to find a way to lengthen my life somehow. I know I sound selfish, but since he's the devil who lent his heart to me, I just think that he might know a way a-and I'm just sorry I dragged you guys down and-and-and…"

She blinked back tears, burying her face into her hands sadly; she didn't know what to say. Amu knew that it was a shameless and self-centred wish coming from someone who was supposed to die right from the start. But she couldn't help the thoughts that came in mind - life was so beautiful, she didn't want to lose it.

Not yet.

The dancer shied her eyes away from her comrades since she couldn't face them in the eyes after blurting her thoughtless comments. To say she was surprised when she felt herself being pulled back into Ikuto's arms was an understatement. As usual, he petted her head kindly and played with the loose strands of her hair, moving them from her face.

'_Ikuto, he's always so warm. I don't want to leave him either, I need him._' Amu basked in the feel of his strong arms wrapped around her.

"Amu, I'm here because I want to be. That's all." Amu looked up into twinkling navy irises and smiled radiantly, snuggling closer to him for his heat, even though she already had her cloak on.

'_Or you just want to get your share of Master Amu._' Yoru thought wryly as the blue-haired man wrapped his arm around the girl. Ikuto sent a piercing look the genie's way, causing Yoru to squeak in fear and turn his head away, whistling an out-of-tune melody. '_He can read minds too?_' he thought nervously, as he gazed at Ikuto with suspicion. '_I wouldn't put it past him._' In truth, Yoru's face was just easy to read and Ikuto was a good face reader, but Ikuto just decided not to let him know.

"Well, I'm going to go prepare for our next journey." Amu got up and stretched her stiff limbs. "There's no point in staying here any longer so we might as well star-"

"Hold on, Amu." Before Amu had a chance to react, she was pulled back to Ikuto's side protectively. She was about to ask him what was wrong before she noticed that they were surrounded. Specifically, a bunch of burly and malicious looking men; Ikuto's grip only tightened more around the petit girl. Even though they couldn't see him, Yoru floated behind Amu and clutched her arm in fear.

"She's the one right, boss?"

The person who stepped up was surprisingly a scrawny woman who was dressed in a gypsy like fashion and wore thin rimmed spectacles over her honey-hazel eyes; the features on her face were quite sharp, gaunt and angular. They only ceased to make her look more fearsome. Nonetheless, it couldn't be denied that she was a uniquely attractive woman. She seemed to be the leader of the bunch and though she wasn't all too strong and muscular looking compared to her goons, her evil grin was the most disgusting out of all of them.

"Yes. She's the one that old man Kazuomi was making a fuss about earlier," She jeered. "Calling her an 'Akumanoko' and such." It was evident she didn't see much in the old man, saying the word with a mocking drawl as if it were the most unbelievable thing she had heard.

"Well, she sure is something you rarely see, eh?" One of them said in a suggestive voice and the rowdy bunch howled with laughter, except for the leader, who was still grinning. Ikuto could feel his lips turn into a small sneer unconsciously, his hold on Amu tightening protectively.

"Well, all we have to do is capture and sell her." The leader said airily, with a lazy wave of her hand. "Then, we'll get enough money from the old man to get around for the rest of our lives." Amu silently called Yoru back into her ring once more, and he went so without any arguments while the gypsy-like woman stared at the dancer with sharp, icy eyes.

Ikuto took a sweeping look at the faces of the hooligans and came to a single conclusion in his head: _'Idiots._' He turned Amu around walked away briskly. Distracted by their own laughing, the leader was stunned when he saw his targets stalking off leisurely.

"H-hey! Where do you think you're going?" Instantly at the voice of their leader, the group of men stopped their cackling to only watch, dumbfounded. Ikuto yawned in tediousness, further insulting them.

"Away from you." He said blandly, not bothering to face them. "I don't feel like playing around with underlings at the moment. Maybe next time... if I even feel like it, that is."

"Hold on!" Of course, that did no good. "The one we want to deal with is the Akumanoko! Listen to me!"

The leader growled when she was ignored and signalled one of her gang members to take action. Nodding in understanding, the man grabbed the arm of their objective roughly. Amu gasped when she was pulled back and used all her power to heave her arm out of the man's grasp, only to have him seize it back once more.

Ikuto snarled demonically and drew the startled girl behind him. Without any second thoughts, the azure eyed lad punched and flung the boy who had touched Amu over his head and onto the ground mercilessly. Then he turned to the other boys that were slowly backing away and out of the alley. Though his face remained blank, Ikuto's eyes flashed with vicious intent as he stepped towards them.

"H-hand over the Akumanoko! O-or else," the voice of the leader was shaky as she continued her slow retreat. "Or else we'll hurt someone!"

Seizing the arm of a child, the lady drew out a knife and held it to the young boy's neck. The boy struggled and kicked, but the crude woman only sneered as she brought the knife closer to the young villager's throat. The child whimpered for his mother, who begged for the woman to let go of her child.

"Please, don't hurt my Hikaru! I'm begging you!" She tried to get closer but was held back by another villager, so as to not cause more trouble.

"Y-Yukari-sama! We're only supposed to get the girl, remember?" The gang member tried to reason with his leader but the persistent auburn-haired woman only shook him off, the child and his mother continued to struggle.

"Old man Kazuomi doesn't matter anymore. The amount of gold we could get from pirates and other merchants if we sold the girl would be triple the old man's amount." The woman – Yukari – cackled maniacally. The other members murmured in agreement and decided to switch tactics as well. "Now, give us the girl or this kid gets hurt."

Ikuto narrowed his eyes dangerously; he was in a real fix. Right now his first priority was protecting Amu and making sure she didn't find out that he was her devil. But now, he also needed to save the innocent child.

In the past – before he had met Amu – the Noble Devil could have cared less about a mortal's life since they were bound to die one day or another, yet now his feelings were different. Now, he actually had feelings.

"Do whatever you want. That child has nothing to do with us and is not of our concern." The cunning navy-haired devil had already formulated a strategy; he planned to make the woman lower her defences before he attacked.

Amu – who had been held back behind Ikuto the entire time – didn't realize that Ikuto had planned out a scheme and thought that he was being serious. She had to save the child so she finally stepped away from her protector and began walking up to the leader. Ikuto tried to pull the girl backwards again, but she shook him off.

"You can't hurt an innocent child. This situation has nothing to do with the people of this town." Amu said in a hard voice. She looked calm and collected, but Ikuto saw the fear behind her façade. Her look did not stray away, as she stared straight at Yukari. "You only want me, right? Fine. But let him go."

Ikuto cursed under his breath. This was not good.

**..::::x-X-x::::...**

**A/N:** Hey guys, it's been a while :) I know you all probably (most likely) hate or strongly dislike me by now, but I can safely say I'm not making ridiculous promises. I know I don't have the best track record when it comes to posting chapters or just coming onto FF, but I won't ever leave my stories unfinished, I can say that much. I will continue to post the chapters, though the time intervals between them might really vary and I don't want to get your hopes up by saying that I will ALWAYS post chapters regularly. But I really appreciate all the reviews I've received and I'm sorry if I haven't thanked you for your advice/comment. I truly do appreciate them :D So, hope you can take the time to leave by a message, feedback, or something for this story. Thanks again! ^_^


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven…**

Amu ground her teeth together in agitation as the gang members' twisted smiles grew even wider. They were tying up both the girl and her companion, securely, so that they had no chance of escaping; or more of the fact that Ikuto scared them enough to take extra precautions, just in case.

"Good to see that you're choosing to co-operate, Akumanoko." The leader said with a steely look.

The villagers watched the spectacle from a distance away, not wanting to get caught in the commotion. From the corner of her eyes, Amu could see the little boy she had just helped safely in his mother's protective arms. The mother kept a stoic face as she watched; her apprehensive eyes narrow and cold, while she watched Amu and Ikuto being tied with distaste.

It was plain to see that she thought that her son had been in danger all because of the Akuma no Hana – after all, that is what everyone assumed when they discovered what she was. However, the boy's tear stained face told a different story from those of his mother's eyes.

"_Thank__ you_." He mouthed gratefully to the dancer; Amu smiled gently – albeit weakly – and nodded her head in acknowledgment. It felt good to be appreciated, but what the young boy said next was what sent her to tears as she had never felt before: "_I'm sorry._"

"Come on! Get goin' already!" Amu was shoved forward by one of the ruffians – with Ikuto at her side – as she walked off to wherever the group of thugs were taking them.

**...::::x-X-x::::…**

Not long afterwards, they had come to a rocky valley with a cavern next to it, most probably the thugs' hideout. Amu was roughly pushed to the side by the group's leader, Yukari, and was sprawled onto the ground. Ikuto watched with fierce eyes, a low growl escaping his throat as he glared at Yukari, no one but Amu actually hearing it or paying attention to it, for that matter.

She glimpsed up slowly, to see that the men were all walking away from her. Instead, she watched helplessly as they crowded and closed in around Ikuto. He was trapped between the group of muggers and the rocky walls of the valley. Still, Ikuto showed no emotion to the ruffians; no fear, no nervousness, no distress, nothing.

"You," Yukari piped up. "I'm surprised you actually had the nerve to raise your hand at one of my men earlier. But now you're going to regret it."

Before Amu could speak up, a gang member swung his fist at Ikuto's face. Because of his handicap – having his hands tied up with the ropes – Ikuto had no way of fighting back, and fell backwards into the dirt. Amu winced when she saw the unsightly mark on his face, his usually light skin already seemed to be bruising. From the first hit, the others started kicking and punching Ikuto into the earth. Amu finally wobbled back onto her feet and ran, as fast as her legs would allow her to, towards Ikuto.

"Why are you doing this to him? Why are you treating him like you would treat me?" She yelled. "He has nothing to do with this, so just don't touch him!"

Still tied up at the wrists, she opened the upper part of her arms to hug Ikuto; also using herself as a shield for him. His entire face and body looked beaten up and his usually pristine clothes looking tattered from the thrashing; even so he did not voice any pain and by looking at him, it could be said that he felt no pain. Yukari scoffed at the display of affection.

"Spare me the drama," she commented coldly. The others were about to continue their thrashing, whether the Akuma no Hana was there or not, they were stopped by the signal of their head. As she walked up to the two on the ground, the others backed away to give her space. "That's enough, no one take another step closer. We can't dirty or break the merchandise… too much."

'_Of course. They want to sell me as merchandise,_' Amu thought bitterly. The hazel eyed woman leered wickedly at the girl's scowl before she switched her sights to the dancer girl's companion. Deciding she wanted to have her own fun, Yukari crouched down slightly towards her hostages. Roughly, she grabbed Ikuto's chin and brought it up to level with her own face, ignoring Amu's fierce look.

"Hmm… aren't you a fine thing. Maybe I could use you as my new play toy." She trailed her fingers lithely down Ikuto's neck and back up to his chin, licking her lips predatorily. Amu looked at her with disgust and pulled Ikuto closer to her, making the older woman snort. "And maybe after I'm done using you, we could make you merchandise as well. I'm sure you could be sold as a man-servant with your pretty face. We'll sell you after your dirty Akumanoko whore; let your bumps and bruises heal. Though, I'm sure that these little spots won't bother those rich folk."

Grinning repulsively, Yukari let go of Ikuto's face and turned around, only to turn back around to face the two captives.

"Don't look at me like that, Devil-girl." She sneered at Amu, who still kept her kept her arms around Ikuto protectively, but was glowering at the vicious leader of the thugs. "Did you honestly think I'd do anything to your little boyfriend here? Sorry, but I don't get together with men younger than me. Besides, I don't fancy playing with my goods and I have my own standards."

'_What person in there right mind would "get together" with you_.' Amu bit her tongue from letting her thoughts loose, they would do no good.

Scoffing at the still-glaring young girl, Yukari tossed her chestnut-coloured hair over her shoulder. "If you're too annoying, we'll throw you down the cliff and into the valleys where the devils live. If I remember correctly, Akumanoko are delectable treats for devils, isn't that right little Devil-girl? So, stay put while we go get a few things; but then again, it's not like you have any other choice."

The entire lot of the bandits snickered as they made their way into the caverns; Amu watched as one by one, their backs disappeared into the darkness of the grotto. If she and Ikuto didn't get away now, then they were as sure as gone. She had to at least think of a way to help Ikuto get away safely. But the question was how?

Distracted in her thoughts, Amu didn't notice the rustling of the nearby shrubs; not until she was grabbed did she become aware of the presence. Before she could scream, a hand trapped her mouth and her voice was silenced. She struggled around and kicked, since her hands were still tied up by the ropes.

"Sshhh!"

'_What__'__s__ going __on?_' When she turned around, she saw that her attacker was a boy who didn't look much older than her; he had long, teal coloured hair and wore round glasses that were slightly askew on his pale face.

"I am sorry for surprising you, but rest assured I am not a thug. I thought I could give you a hand." He gave her a small, timid smile and Amu felt that she had seen this boy somewhere before, his face felt familiar.

'_Where __have __I__ seen__ him __before__…__?_'

"My name is Sanjou Kairi. A-And... umm... these are for you." He bashfully handed her a bunch of flowers in her coupled hands; ironically enough, they were her favourite types – wild china roses. The roses looked fresh and felt like velvet, with the golden tints peeking out of the blooming pink and white petals; the scent wafted to her nose and it calmed her nerves slightly. He watched her gaze at the roses and brush her finger tips across their petals softly.

"I really enjoy seeing you dance. Ever since you came into this town, I would watch your performances." As he spoke, his face slowly turned to a scarlet hue and Amu could feel the heat on her own cheeks increasing just by looking at his nervousness.

"Thank you." She tried to break the tension.

'_That__'__s __right! __He__'__s __the __one __who __always __came__ to __see__ my __dancing __in __the __town__ and __called__ out __to __me__ earlier,_' she finally recalled.

"Um… about the people who tied you up… Great Sister Yukari and her people are originally nice people. Sister may say many crude things; however everyone knows she never really means any of them. She's not a person like that, but she keeps up an act to look like the strong-leader type. Even though I'm not really related to any of them, they picked me up when I was abandoned and helped me out. But, I'm sorry it turned out like this. Even if you are an 'Akuma no Hana', it is unforgivable to sell a person to make money."

Amu stared at Kairi in awe: he had just said that entire thing in one breath, and he wasn't even gasping for air!

Kairi, on the other hand, mistook her silence as distrust. "Do not worry about anything, I can assist you. I will try to find an opening and help both you and your companion get away, you have my word for it."

"Eh? B-but-_!_"

She stopped in mid sentence when Kairi came closer to her face; with shaky hands he slipped one of the roses into her hair carefully. She blushed at the intimate gesture, since no boy – other than Ikuto, of course – had done such a thing to her. Kairi stepped back when he was done, the crimson hue that his face took on deepened.

"In exchange for my help, I have a request." Before she responded, Amu took a deep breath to calm her unsteady heart.

"What is your request?" Amu looked at him, waiting for whatever he was going to say. The boy sucked in a breath.

"P-Please show me your dance again. That is all." He mumbled quickly, before backing away into the shrubs once more, leaving Amu stunned speechless.

**...::::x-X-x::::...  
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'_That kid. She forgot about me because of a kid like him?_'

Ikuto was not pleased. Amu had been hurt by ruffians who planned to sell her and she had been made upset by their leader; but this had just crossed the line! Some random kid had come, pushed him out of the way, and stolen Amu's attention from him using _flowers_!

'_Her **favourite** flowers,_' His conscious argued. Not to mention it seemed like the shove had left him bleeding with a deep gash when his head had hit the rocks of the cliff behind him. However Ikuto's final nerve had snapped when the little boy had dared to _touch_ Amu – something no other person or creature had the privilege to do, unless Ikuto had allowed it.

'_She blushed. Amu only does that when she's with me, even that Kiddy King couldn't make her blush like_ _that._' Ikuto mused. Then he thought of what the boy had said about "saving Amu" and how he had even "requested" a dance from her! '_Human boys... his fate has been decided: that boy will face my wrath._'

Ikuto thought about Amu's blush again and the frown on his face deepened; he would be the one to help her, as always. Not some puny, weak, human boy who had a silly little crush on her. He refused to acknowledge that "kid", not to mention he would make sure that "the kid" – or so Ikuto had now dubbed him – knew that Amu was his flower. '_She only dances personally for me._..'

Yes. That kid was most certainly going to be punished, Ikuto would make sure of it.

**...::::x-X-x::::...**


	9. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight…**

"Hey, Akumanoko! What're you doing over there?"

Startled by the sudden voice, Amu turned around to see her captors strolling out of their hideout. She looked at them all with careful observation; now that she took a closer look, they were all laughing and joking around. She had to admit, they truly looked like a real family.

"Standing around since there isn't much I can do. After all, I am tied up." Rolling her eyes, but still keeping on a smile, she lifted her arms up to point out the ropes tied around her wrists.

"She's go' you there, buddy."

"Che. Wha'ever." He mumbled unceremoniously.

The others all chuckled and elbowed the man in the ribs mockingly. The man in question flushed ever so slightly from the unwanted attention, and shoved his hands into his pocket while muttering things under his breath incoherently. Amu watched as they all lounged about the large rocks and chatted amongst themselves.

"Hey! Look who's here!" One of the bandits shouted all of a sudden.

One by one, all heads turned around to where their companion pointed. All of their faces broke into wide, silly grins as they all hurriedly made their way to the new comer. Amu's eyes widened momentarily when she saw that it was Kairi, before she thought of his promise; she decided that she would trust him since he seemed like a sincere person.

Turning around, she went back to Ikuto. He sat against the wall of the ridge with – something she hadn't noticed before – a small, bleeding wound on the side of his face that had not been there before and a dark scowl on his face. Quickly, she sat down beside him and tried to tend to him the best that she could with a piece of torn fabric and her hands tied, wondering how he had gotten the gash. The two of them said nothing, until he winced slightly.

"Sorry if it hurts a bit." She said softly as she continued to attend to his injury.

"It's okay, it doesn't hurt." She smiled at him when he reached up and gently caressed her face with tied and callous yet very warm hands. His words enveloped her in comfort that he would always give, no matter what the situation.

When she was done, he leaned against the rocky wall of the gorge, emitting a hiss at the stony surface that scratched his head and the injury. But she stopped him, and pulled his head back off of the wall gently; he gave her a strange look.

"J-Just this once…" She whispered shyly, and Ikuto smirked lightly when he realized what she was trying to say. Amu had let him rest his head on her lap and just let him lay there, while she listened in on what the crowd of burly men were saying; weaving her fingers in and out of his silky hair unconsciously.

**...::::x-X-x::::...**

"'Bout time you got back, Kairi!"

"Maybe now Sanjou-sama will be a little less tough on us."

"You better hope she didn't hear you." All of them laughed heartily.

"Anyways, how you doin' little man?" They ruffled his long, dark-cyan hair and clapped him on the back; Kairi gave a small smile to the men that swarmed around him.

"We don' ge' to hear from you tha' much these days."

"We thought you weren't coming back until tomorrow?"

"Finally decide to give up on tha' fancy-pants job, have you?" They teased.

"Ahh. No. As a trainee pharmacist, I have more spare time than the regulars. Besides, the herb gardens are tended by everyone so it fortunately does not create any problems if I come and visit sometimes." He pushed up his glasses in a very knowledgeable fashion and Amu couldn't help but wonder if he was really as young as they all said or just looked it.

"Ehh! You're such a smart kid." Catching Kairi off guard, one of the ruffians trapped the boy around his neck and ruffled his hair even more, since he held the lad in place. "You migh' only be fi'teen, but it makes me feel a stupid standing next to you. But this helps, don' it?"

'_Fifteen?_' Amu thought in shock. Kairi was about two years younger than her!

Kairi frowned as his hair was being messed up and in a flash, he jabbed the man on the side of his neck. Kairi's "offender" suddenly froze in place, joyful smile still plastered on his face, before collapsing down backwards. The thug lay frigid in the dirt and Kairi took the time to fix his unkempt hair and lopsided glasses.

"I see you all are still the same as ever." He commented, cleaning his glasses.

"Idiot. The boy is Sanjou-sama's brother! You should know better than to mess with him." All of them laughed boisterously, as Kairi helped the man in the dirt get back to normal.

"You win this time, brat." The thug muttered.

"I will take that as a compliment. How is Great Sister faring?" Kairi asked them.

"You're 'Great Sister' is doing quite nicely, thank you." Everyone looked towards the cavern to see Yukari standing outside, hands crossed across her chest and a grin on her lips. "And how are things going for you, little brother? Then again, I don't have to ask. You're a sharp kid."

"Sister Yukari." Kairi bowed respectfully towards the intimidating – at least to the others – form of his sister-esque figure.

"Well, I'll catch up with you in a while since I've got a few more things to do. In the mean time, you can entertain yourself. I don't think you've seen our latest item for auction, have you?" She smiled nastily in Amu's direction, making the latter shiver slightly after she had quickly shifted her glance away from the group.

Kairi made no movement of recognition, just standing in his spot quietly. The others misunderstood his silence as anticipation as they eagerly directed his attention to the tied up dancer and her companion, while Yukari went back into the cavern.

"We're sure gonna get a hefty amount of money from this duo. The girl's a dancer and the guy's a musician; plus with their looks, we'll probably get some extra stuff from those rich folk." But before anything more could be said, another voice was heard.

"Hello! I'm back!" A high pitched voice rang out. Amu watched as the faces of her captors lit up brightly again and then turned to mischievous smiles when Yukari unexpectedly came out of the cave again, looking just a slight bit flustered; but she covered up the emotion once more.

"Here it comes," one whispered to his companion. "I haven't seen this show in a long time."

"Took you long enough, Yuu! You did get my message, didn't you?" The bespectacled woman barked, her fiery auburn hair looking windswept and her face taut of little emotion. The man looked at her with a playfully indignant expression on his face.

"Of course I di-_oof_!" They all watched with indifferent eyes as the man tumbled into the dirt, face flat.

"That's Nikaidou for you." The thugs jeered silently, elbowing each other's ribs jokingly.

"I bet he tripped over a beetle just now."

"Or maybe a pebble." Another whispered, and snickers broke out around the place but silenced when Yukari shot them with a nasty look. Even so, the ruffians had to make an effort to keep their faces straight.

When he got up, Amu got a better look at the man's face. Looking to be in his late twenties, he had messy sandy-coloured hair and bright aureolin eyes that sparked with delight behind his lopsided glasses. He looked up to the agitated face of Yukari, chuckling sheepishly.

"As I was saying previously, yes, I did get the message," he dusted off dirt from his clothing and stretched out in a way that looked like he had just gotten out of bed. Nevertheless, the sharp eyed woman scolded him harshly.

Amu watched interestedly, the exchange between the two; though they appeared to be arguing, the twinkle in their eyes was evident. It was clear that both the copper haired woman and the brunet shared feelings of love for each other, but covered it up with an exterior of rivalry – though it was easy to see through it.

"–Alright, alright. I understand, Yukari. I won't do something like that again. So, about the girl… what did you say you're name was, Miss?"

To say Amu was surprised when the man turned to her was an understatement – not to mention more politely than most people were to her kind – as she stared at him blankly. He seemed to have misinterpreted her silence as fear and smiled at her kindly, toning down the excitement of his voice and speaking more gently.

"You don't have to be frightened of me. Wait, what the-?" The strange man suddenly ran up to her; Amu had to use all her power to keep her self rooted to the ground and not confirm her fear in front of her captors, but her grasp on Ikuto did tighten. "Why are you all tied up?" He asked her innocently and the pinkette thoughts of being threatened flew out the window.

But, at that point, Amu also wanted to ask him whether he was really as old as he looked but kept her mouth sealed. Partially because it would have been rude and secondly because the man ran up to her and started to untie the knots around her wrists!

"Let me just loosen these for you and then-"

"Yuu! Are you insane? She. Is. **Merchandise**!" The red-head snapped at the man, slapping his hands away from the ropes that bound the rosette's hands.

"It's fine Yukari. She's in no position to threaten us; she has no weapons, no backup and she's a travelling dancer. Besides, her companion here looks stronger and it's not as if I'm letting him go. I can only guess how angry you would be then. Tell me, does she have any chance against the forty of us, with or without the help of her wounded comrade?"

He took Yukari's silent glare as the answer that he wanted. "Exactly! No harm in untying these nuisances for her. I mean look, they bruised and even dug a few scars into her skin! Honestly, you all should be careful; you may have taken her as a captive, but you have to have some humanity! After all, she is a girl. Are you alright, Miss?"

The ochre orbed girl looked down at her wrists to see that the man was right. In that short period of time, the ropes had scrapped her skin and violet tinges of a soon-to-appear bruise were making themselves visible. The usually creamy-skinned joints looked like a disarray of colours – raw, bruised, and swollen – and now that she noticed, they stung quite a bit.

Still, Amu nodded wordlessly, since it wasn't that painful. Nonetheless, she didn't dare to make any eye contact; she had to keep herself as low-profile as possible so she could come up with a way to escape this horrible predicament. Finally, the strangely-kind man finished unravelling her hands from their binds.

"Okay." He clapped his hands together. "Now, let me introduce myself. My name is Nikaidou Yuu and I am the leader of these people!" Yukari hit the man across the back of his head, making everyone else snigger as his glasses flew off at the impact.

Yuu smiled sheepishly, picking his glasses off of the dirt and wiping them with the cleaner edge of his vest. Correcting what he had stated bemusedly.

"Along with my partner, Sanjou Yukari." He bowed deeply and dramatically her way as she scoffed at his antics. "Whom I've known for the longest time, so trust me when I say she isn't all that menacing as she poses to be."

"Yuu…" The woman with the titian tresses snarled in a low voice; grinding her teeth together and clenching her fists in an attempt to not act violently towards the putridly-optimistic creature – or so she thought of him.

"I'm just kidding, Yukari. Don't take everything so seriously, you'll get creases and wrinkles from all of your frowning earlier in life and then you'll start to look **old**! Smile a bit! Now, your name…?"

If they hadn't planned to use her and Ikuto as merchandise, Amu may have actually believed his words. So she said nothing. But, even as she kept her mouth shut, she found it hard to keep quiet when an understanding yet somewhat hurt look crossed his face for a fleeting second; but he covered it up with an apathetic yet cheery hand wave.

"Ahh. It's fine, it's fine. I can understand why you wouldn't want to tell us your name." Nikaidou chuckled. "In fact, I doubt I wouldn't have done the same if I were you."

"No. I... you see, it's just…" Amu stammered uncertainly, she took a deep breath before finally speaking, although some what shakily. "I'm Hinamori Amu."

"So you do speak!" He joked. "Okay then. Himamori Amu-"

"Umm, it's Hi_n_amori Amu." She corrected hesitantly, emphasizing the mistake he made.

"Right, right. Himamori-" Amu was about to correct his mistake once more, but the ginger haired woman beside him spoke up again.

"Yuu. Stop socializing with the girl. Like I already said, she's being auctioned for. And if you continue to be like this she'll get her hopes up for nothing."

With that, Yukari turned around and sat down on a nearby rock, fixing everyone ahead of her with a cold glare. An awkward silence filled the atmosphere, and everyone seemed to hold their breaths. Finally, Nikaidou broke the silence with a cough and a casual smile.

"Whatever you say, Yukari. So, Amu-chan," Yukari shot him a dangerous look, but the merry man shrugged it off. "You're a dancer right? Why not entertain us for a bit? If you don't mind, that is."

"I don't think-" Amu was about to refuse since – for the first time ever – her "audience" made her feel nervous; that is until, she was struck with a brilliant thought. "Well, I guess there's no harm in just dancing, so, sure."

"Great!" Yuu beamed at her with sparkling eyes. "Okay, everyone be quiet! Miss Himamori's going to show us one of her dances." Amu blushed as the usually raucous thugs' chatter hushed and they gave her their full attention.

'_This __is __it.__ If __I __don__'__t __do__ this __right, __then__ I__'__ll __have __put __Ikuto__'__s __life __in __danger._'

She couldn't – and she absolutely wouldn't – put Ikuto's life in any more danger. He never let her get hurt and he definitely didn't deserve to go through any of this; he was always her guardian and protector, but this time she would help him. At all costs.

**..****.::::x-X-x::::...**


	10. Chapter 9

A/N: Hi Everyone! I just wanted to start off with this note to give a **HUGE HUGE HUGE** thanks to all my reviewers and readers so far! And especially a big shout out (erm... in this case "read out") to _**xXxWhiteAngelxXx**, **IkutoTsukiyomi'sGirl**, **xChibinChanx**_, _**addimison2** _and _**ChuluSempai18**_! Thank you guys for always reviewing and supporting me :) I really appreciate it and I hope I can continue or even just be able to fulfill your expectations for this story. I'm really glad you guys have enjoyed this story even though I can be a lousy updater! ^^" Anyways, hope you guys enjoy this chapter :) Now, what are you doing still reading this thing? Get to **_that_** thing at the bottom! ^_^

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**Chapter Nine…**

She looked at the waiting faces around her; they looked interested and eager, but she had no time to pay attention to such things. Taking a deep breath to prepare herself for what was to come, Amu smiled at all of her spectators.

"Now, please watch," she raised her arms, the shimmering silk attached to her bangles rising simultaneously with soft tinkles. "The dream of a single, fleeting moment."

All at once, Amu leaped high to in the air; the glittering pink silk and her sleek hair looking like one as they twirled about her form. As she came down, she danced to the speedy rhythm of her feet and the anklets that jingled. Letting the dance flow out of her, she threw radiant smiles at her audience, who seemed captivated by her swift yet gracefully vivacious movements. She did a series of complex movements of her feet and hands; leaps, twists, and arm work which she executed with perfection.

"You know, I feel kind of bad selling her now." One of the men whispered to another. Their zealously-cold commander heard them and shot them down with her demonic glare, making them clamp their mouths shut and watch in silence.

Although Yukari did not say it or even look it, she was also enchanted by the girl dancing in front of her. The rosette looked glowing and free, something you would never expect from anyone of her kind or position; even though she had been kept hostage and knew she was going to be used to make money someone other than herself. Even though she knew she was despised by all for bearing the mark on her chest; even though she was the flower of the devil.

But what probably was most unsettling to Yukari, was all the _compassion_ and _love_ she carried about with her and even offered to share with others – another thing the cold leader had always been incapable of doing. Sure, she had always received admiration and care from the men that would be lost without her leadership; the boy that she had raised as her brother or just her closest companion (something she would never admit) Yuu, but it was different for the Devil-girl. She had everything and _more_.

It was the little things she did: the way she would smile or the look on her face as she tended to her companion which had made something inside of the tawny haired woman's mind reel in wonderment. These thoughts continued to stir within her increasingly when she saw the gaze of the navy haired lad, as he stared at her. The both of them made her feel envious – envious of their merriment, their love for one another, their inexpressible happiness, and their indescribable freedom.

_It was something she did not possess._ But it was also something she wanted more than _anything_.

She was pulled back to reality when she noticed her ochre-eyed hostage tug on the arms of some of her men, urging them to dance along with her. Without any hesitation, the men joined her and one at a time, everyone joined the girl; following her in a line as they jigged together.

If that were not enough, her jaw almost dropped when even Yuu and her younger brother – the most cool and level-headed person she knew, second to herself – had been coaxed into joining the dancer, though her brother was a tad bit stiff. Still, the most shocking occurrence happened when the girl spun up to her – the fearsome gang leader – and linked their arms together, pulling the auburn into their lively line dance.

Starting out rigid and uncomfortable, Yukari slowly eased into the dance as a smile crept on her face. Soon enough she was laughing and jigging with the rest of them, her usually cold front completely melted. Her eyes locked with those of Yuu's, and for the first time probably, she gave him a blushing smile; his eyes widened in amazement and Yukari laughed at the expression, while she continued to twirl along.

After a few minutes later, but what felt like hours later, their feet became sore from all of the movement and they fell to the ground in laughter and panting. Yukari gasped for air, her lungs straining for oxygen from all of the dancing and laughing; small chuckles still going past her lips, as they did for the others. Finally, after cooling down for a while, she opened her eyes to see Yuu's smiling face right over her own. Blushing a deep scarlet hue at the proximity of their faces, she shot right up; only to end up bumping heads together with the man in front of her.

"Ouch." The two winced in unison. "Sorry."

Looking at each other's surprised faces, biting their lips at the same time only to burst into peels of laughter. Around them, the others looked at the chortling couple, only to find themselves bursting with mirth. Calming down, Yuu looked around for the girl who had led to all of the merriment; only to find her standing in the shadows of the rising dale with a serious face.

"Thank you for the fun 'dance lesson'." The messy-haired man grinned at the girl, but at seeing her solemn face, his smile slowly faded. "Miss… are you okay-"

"No, you shouldn't be thanking me." The pinkette took a step up. "In fact, I should be saying sorry to you all. Forgive me for what I am doing, but I have no choice." By now, Yukari had gotten on her feet in defence.

"What are you-_!_"

But before she could get say anything more, she watched as Amu charged straight at her and then bounded over her head. In one fall swoop, the dancer had taken the sword from one of the men and held a stance behind him, with the blade at his neck.

Not knowing what to do in such a situation, everyone turned to face their ginger-haired commander for orders, who found herself at odds; she had the urge to let the Amu-girl escape with her partner. But the expectant faces of her own companions and subordinates, along with her pride, pushed away the first thought. After much contemplation, Yukari drew out her sword, and in turn, all of the others – except for Nikaidou and Kairi – drew out their blades as well.

"If you don't let go of him now, things aren't going to end nicely for you," Yukari threatened in a low voice, inching closer to the dancer. Amu did not flinch in the least.

"Things won't end for me here. Not yet." She had pressed the cold, metal edge of the weapon to the man's throat. She heard the man take in a sharp breath, not at all feeling comfortable with his circumstances and she couldn't help but pity him a little, knowing what the fear of being on the edge of death was like all too well.

'_I'm sorry, but I have to do this for Ikuto._'

"Did you actually think that you could escape? You give yourself far too much credit!" Yukari thundered maliciously. Before the rogues could take another step further to attack the dancer though, Amu swiftly swept her fingers across the ring on her other hand.

'_This is it!_'

"Yoru! Come out and give these people the gold that they desire!" In a cloud of smoke, the small genie of the ring came within sight of the bandits – who were astonished by the sight – the energy of his magic swirling about his frame.

"It's about time my ultimate power was seen, nya!" Finger raised to the sky, a beam of light shot out and lit the atmosphere with a shimmering glow, making them forget about the genie for the time. Everyone froze, as little twinkles of light shone in the sky and then started raining down upon them all.

"W-What is this?"

"It's… **_money_!"**

"There are gold coins falling down on us!"

"It's raining money!"

'_Now__'__s__ my __chance!_' Amu thought as she slowly let go of her captive and put down his weapon, without him noticing her presence.

He went to go join the group of men that were awestruck by the sudden miracle, as all of them put their weapons back in their scabbards. The burly lads stood in place, faces bright and arms stretched out in front of them in disbelief as the gold coins rained from the heavens.

They cheered and hugged each other, before turning to look at their leader with glee. They saw that she was smiling gently as she gazed at an empty space, where no one or thing stood; before she turned to glance at them.

**...::::x-X-x::::...**

It was dark and he was but a lurking shadow in that darkness. He panted weakly, having used too much energy to have gotten this far. He needed to eat and to eat he had to kill – but his appetite now stirred for the Akuma no Hana.

'_What a foolish girl. Does she not realize who she is with? She is human, so most probably not, nor does she realize what lays ahead in her future the silly mortal._'

He heard a series of caws and the rustle of leaves rang clear through the dense walls of green that surrounded him. Staring at one spot, he watched as an extremely large raven swooped down after a small nightingale; yet it did not seem to search it as food. On the contrary, it seemed to be guarding the nightingale as the two perched themselves on a tree – the raven on one branch and the nightingale on the other.

'_How ironic._'

But the raven, he noticed looked hungry – if it wanted it could tear the other creature to shreds, however it stayed silently watching the nightingale prim its feathers before it almost called out to it. The raven immediately swooped after it, looking upon _him_ with dark, beady eyes and stepping closer towards the other bird.

'_Such a pity. However, I, too, require my needs to be satisfied._' The shadow swiped out at the nightingale, but the raven defended it meticulously.

'_Amusing_.' So the shadow continued to swipe and swipe, until it gave the slightest of wounds to one of the raven's wings.

The nightingale finally chirped up boldly; defiantly. And that's when the shadow took it's strike at it; one strike and it lay on the forest floor, nothing by a pool of blood with a mangled body. Finally, the raven looked shaken enough to try and kill the attacker. Yet, at the same time, it also hungered to feast on the remains of the nightingale.

"Too little, too late." The shadow said in a cold and raspy voice, before finishing its deed.

Now, on the dirt laid two mangled creatures side-by-side, their bloods pooling and mixing as one. The shadow watched in mild fascination as he crouched down and picked up the body of the nightingale before snapping it into two, then tasting its still warm blood.

"Yet he also does not realize that he is just as foolish as her. He did not take her when he had the chance. He was **weak**."

Then he picked up the colder body of the raven and did the same as before, but did not taste its fluid of life. '_So, I guess I'll just take her instead._' With that he burned the body of the raven into cinders.

**...::::x-X-x::::...**

"Can you believe this, Sanjou-sama? It's a miracle!" She merely scoffed.

"It is useless to cheer for this so called 'miracle'. These coins," Yukari scooped up a handful of the coins in her hand before dropping them back onto the ground, one by one. "Are merely shaped metals of what is known as fools' gold."

"But… How can you tell?" One of her men demanded, only to be shoved and hit by his companions for speaking against their usually ferocious leader. She shook her head at their behaviour.

"By having done something you fools don't do: observing. Let this be a lesson to you all instead of going willy-nilly for just any amount of jewels and treasure you're presented with. Now, watch carefully," was all she said. Everyone around her – Kairi, Nikaidou, and the ruffians of her gang – gave her their attention.

The russet haired woman unsheathed a sharpened, steel dagger and took out a small gold coin from one of her pockets. Yukari grazed the surface of her coin with the tiny blade, only to leave a scrape on its face; she showed them the scratch on it before pocketing it again. Then she took one of the replicas, flicked it high into the air and then scratched it with the tip of her weapon. It fell to the ground and into a pile of the bogus coins under it with a resonating "clang!"

Sure enough, they all saw a distinct black scrape on the face of the coin and flecks of golden powder on the polished silver metal of the dagger.

"Iron pyrite." Kairi noted as he scrutinized the gold flecks before looking back at Yukari. "It's commonly used by swindlers in markets. Usually the black markets."

"That's exactly right," She said calmly.

All of them looked at the "gold", faces dejected before sense finally came back to them. Outraged, the men holding the handfuls of threw their coins to the ground and drew out their swords once more. Looking for the girl who had conned them, they realized that Amu had gotten away while they were distracted by the falling "gold" – also taking Ikuto with her, as only ropes laid discarded on the ground.

"Damn that girl!"

"She used a trick to divert our attention?"

"She and that musician are both wounded, so they can't be too far off."

"Right! Let's go after her!" Just as they were about to break into a run, to go after the escapees, they were stopped at the order of a strong voice...

"**_No_**."

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	11. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

* * *

><p>Expressions of astonishment painted the faces of everyone present, as they gaped in shock: <em>Yuu<em> was he actually giving orders in the steed of their commander,_ Yukari_? He had never done anything like it and found it hard to believe, mouths opening and closing at a loss of words.

"Come again," Yukari finally asked, breaking the unusual silence. Her voice was dangerously calm and silken.

"I said I disagree. We are not going after her." He said with a tone of finality. The others all turned to look at Yukari, wondering what their leader had to say. Yuu looked pleadingly at the hard-hearted woman seeing the hesitation to take a decision. She opened her mouth, as if to say something but her eyes changed and her jaws set rigidly. Her pride would not allow her to show any weakness.

"I am quite sure I never agreed to such a decision, Yuu." Voice low and face cold, Yukari's eyes flashed wickedly as she stepped up to him. She held her head high, putting up airs that challenged him to defy her while clutching her sword tighter. "You were not given the privilege to decide what our course of action is or not."

Yuu frowned as she turned away from him to face their underlings, sword raised as a symbol of her dominance. "Yukari, listen-"

"No. _You_ listen and get this straight: we are going to go after that little Demon-girl," she snarled. "We will get her alive, a few bruises and battering won't kill her. We'll have her disciplined before she's sold."

"You've never been this barbaric before. I forget when you started to use this façade among your own comrades." Her underlings said nothing, looking between the pair anxiously.

"What façade? You think I can't be cruel? You think I can't be selfish? Just because I'm a _woman_," Yukari sneered. "Let's settle something right now. You-" she jabbed his chest with her finger, sharply "-wouldn't be here if it weren't for me. Hell, you wouldn't even be alive, Nikaidou."

Yuu frowned deeply. She had never addressed him with such venom – not even when she had first found the callous boy starving on the streets or when he had attempted to steal food from the much stronger girl or had gotten into tussles with him because of his arrogance. "I never said-"

"You don't need to say anything. You're either with me or you're not." She smirked, knowing that he would never do such a thing. He wouldn't leave. "Her partner is one weakling against many who are more capable than he can imagine. And then, we _will_ sell he-"

"Maybe I should leave then." Yukari stopped in her tracks, mouth open wide as her words dissolved on her tongue. She stared at him, trying to decipher if he was being serious. For moments, the tension strangled everyone in a deadly quiet. She searched relentlessly in his face for something to tell-tale of a sick joke to make her shut up but found none.

Her blood boiled.

"Go for it." Why would he betray her? Why would he leave her? Didn't she mean anything to him? "Who am I to hold you back?" She croaked back, grinding her teeth together. "Because, you know, I never laboured relentlessly to make sure you, these guys, all of us had something to choke down to survive. No, of course not!" Her hands shook but she willed them to stop. Yuu knew his words had hit below the belt. "I don't give a damn, you fucking traitor. Don't think that I'll give a damn about a pathetic dog like you running away with your tail between your legs. It wasn't like you've done any shit for me in the first place! I didn't need you to survive!"

"Yukari–" She shoved past him. "Wait! I'm sorry! You know I didn't mean that!" Yuu grabbed a hold of Yukari's wrist and forced her to turn his way. Her sword clattered on the rocky surface and everyone looked at him with wide eyes, surprised as his boldness.

"Go to hell, Nikaidou! You have no right to say anything about this mess. She made all of us look like fools by… sorcery or something all because of your weaknesses. I'm the one who had to get my hands dirty for us while you hid behind me. You're weak. You're spineless." Yukari's declaration – her insistence of being the stronger, more resolute one – was left to hang in the air. She refused to bring herself down to his levels – not after all her efforts.

"Why are you still doing this, Yukari?" He looked tired and ragged. It served as the reminder she never wanted of the way time passed and that, surely, if he looked so worn out, no doubt she looked just as weary. "I know you better than I know myself and everyone knows you're the survivor among us. You don't like help and always do everything your way. But I don't want to lead this kind of pointless existence. Just listen to me for once," he pleaded. "Don't you think that girl has given us something we've been missing? I don't think that any of you have felt that free and truly happy in a long time. We are indebted to her."

"She tricked us," she said. She refused to be made a fool out of. But Yuu's stood firm and unmoving.

"Please." She could not believe her eyes or ears at this unusual resolve. A part of her wanted to block it all out, close her eyes and ears to his persuasion because as stubborn as she was and as much as she did not want to admit it, Yukari needed to know he agreed with her. "Please don't do this anymore." Yuu was her pillar of strength and she was the same for him. They never talked about it but it was an unspoken contract the both of simply understood. It was the way things worked and how they always worked. No matter how she much she wanted to, she could not turn her back on him. And this was a side of him that was unfamiliar; one she rarely saw; one that she rarely wanted to see; it made her uncomfortable to know they did not stand on the same ground.

Still feeling as if their ears deceived them, the astounded ruffians all turned to face the tawny-eyed leader, whose usually serious and sure face looked stifled and abnormally disarmed. "I-I…" Then, looking at Yuu with a hard stare, she swallowed down her previous stalwart verdict. "We're not going after her." The soft words left her before she could wrestle her voice back, leaving her more confounded than the others.

At the same time, she was unsurprised by her confidence in him.

Yuu always agreed with her, he was always on **her** side – no matter the whining front he put up. She looked around at the hesitant faces of her long-time comrades. Yukari had grown up with them and raised them as an older sister and motherly figure. She picked them off the streets, all of them an orphan and outcast. She cared for all of them immensely and wanted the best for each and every one of them – so much that Yukari had long buried her own feelings to prioritize their well-being. But even then, she could not rid that special care she felt for the clumsy man.

It reminded her of that long ago argument that had occurred between the two: "_I like you, Yukari. Not as a friend or a brother but as the man you think I'm not. And I want you to see me as any other man._"

Yukari laughed at him, calling it off as a joke. Things had never been the same between them since.

She was not ready for such a confession and her own clumsy, immature feelings for him scared her to no ends. So, she ran away from everything, not even turning around to see how Yuu felt from her actions. But after sorting out her feelings, she tried to talk to him again but he broke her already-dented heart by pretending nothing had ever been said or done. So she did the same, she pretended and buried away those feelings. But, she made sure to keep tending their bond so they never, _ever_ broke apart again. Yet, they had come so close to it once again; their feelings were on a precipice. But she knew, more than she knew anything at the moment, that it would wound her to lose him.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Opening her eyes, she plucked up the courage to give her next orders. "We… We are not going after her, that girl can run away. We won't follow," she said, voice strangled. She gazed away as Yuu beamed at her, looking irked as usual but becoming extremely aware of his hand on her wrist. "I-I think, maybe, we can let this one go. Besides, she would be too far by now. Running without purpose is useless." She held her chin up, no matter how unsure she felt: Yukari was still their leader and had an image to keep up.

"Say, that girl," Yuu said unexpectedly. "Anyone know what she is?" Everyone looked at him vacantly.

"Umm… a dancer?" After much gawking, someone answered sceptically. They were all wondering where the group's usual clown – though now he seemed more capable than they had previously assumed – was directing this conversation to and why the usually head-strong commander was not barking insults at them.

"Other than that."

"Oh! I got it! She's an Akumanoko!" Another answered enthusiastically. He flushed slightly when he noticed the stares he got from everyone else.

"Exactly," he shrugged simply. Silence dragged on for a moment.

"...What does that have to do with anything?"

"On the contrary, it has to do with everything." Yuu chirped. His smile was enigmatic and made her want to break his jaw.

Nevertheless, Yukari sighed and asked in a low voice, "It's _that_, isn't it?" Everyone looked at her with perplexed expressions, except for the idiot the question was directed to. He continued to smile at her – obnoxiously – and she glared back at him.

"Freedom, love, happiness – don't you think she has all that we wish for and more? And I don't mean the material wealth, if that's what you think I'm referring to."

Yukari remembered it clearly, talking about their wishes as children. When they had first met, everyone wished for a family and parents but that changed as they quickly formed their own misfit family. Years later, they ended up talking about it again – just Yuu and Yukari. They preferred to watch over the ridiculously hyperactive boys rather than join in their games. They would guard them, sitting and chatting aimlessly like watchful – but goading, if the others became _too_ silly – parents. Yukari, as expected, wanted to become a powerful leader and make the "_stupid rich guys kiss the ground beneath her feet_." Yuu had grown calmer with Yukari, no longer the cold-hearted boy on the street, confessing what he wanted: "_I don't want to be controlled by someone else for the rest of my life. I just want to be free and feel love and be happy_. _Is it too much to ask to be happy?_"

She had not taken him seriously but looking at him now, she knew she was wrong to do so. The day dreaming wimp had not changed since then. Much. But, that was in her eyes only – the same could not be said about the others. Murmurs went up between everyone, but when their fiery leader cleared her throat for attention, the voices went down immediately and they stood at attention.

"Trust me when I say this," Yukari took a gaze around at all of the faces that waited for her to go on. "I am not going to turn weak any time soon. But… I want to try something different now. I'm not going to have those silk-wearing softies make fools out of us. However, it is your decisions whether you'd like to follow me or not." They stared blankly at her. She coughed into her hand awkwardly. "Last chance. If you try to run out on me after this, I'll hunt you down, skin you alive, and sell your hide for every coin I can get."

Yuu let go of her hand and she missed the comfort, but she was never one to show her vulnerability. Yukari waited for some sort of response from them, having made up her mind. Getting no reaction, she turned around to walk away. But, she was stopped when a hand was put on her shoulder; turning her head around, she saw Yuu's grinning face. He cocked his head in the direction of her beaming followers.

"We've all grown up together since who-knows-when."

"Ya didn't really think that we'd just abandon ya that easily, did ya boss?"

"I'd lose a limb before that happened," one of them said, not to be outdone. Others chuckled and the astonished woman turned her entire body to face them all, her own confident grin on her face. After a long time, they saw something akin to hope and genuine happiness in her eyes. She looked warmer and open and more than ready to kick ass.

"Good to know!" She beamed in turn, before her smile became sinister and promised mercilessness. The atmosphere around them turned dangerous and the men all cowered before her. "Just remember I don't plan on becoming any easier than I already am!"

Someone muttered audibly, "When was she ever easy?"

"In fact," she said even louder. "Judging by Yuu, I think I have gotten a little soft on you lot!" Her rambunctious group cowered as shivers went down their spine while starring daggers in the cheeky clown's way. Was it humanely possible for her to become **_tougher_**? "Be prepared to work until your bones ache and-"

"Come on Yukari! Loosen up!"

"What are you–_gaah_!" In the blink of an eye, Yuu had grabbed the woman's arm and pulled her into a happy waltz that had her face burning up – ignoring all her protests and violent threats. There was no way he would hold back on her now and she saw it clear as day in his eyes. Yuu called for mead and all at once wide grins lit up all around him. The others cheered and whooped before stirring up another round of raucous festivities, as they too joined and celebrated away for their new beginning.

From the side, hidden in a bushel of shrubs and plants, the figure of a lad watched the merriment of the rambunctious group for a little longer before silently slipping away into the forests. He was going after her.

* * *

><p>"Are you sure you're alright?"<p>

"I told you, I'm fine. You need to worry more about yourself." Amu glanced at Ikuto sceptically, feeling uneasy at his words.

Even though Ikuto was injured, they had to escape. They were still running through the thickets of the forest, trying to find a way out. Lost in her thoughts, Amu had almost missed the huge log in front in front of her and jumped over the obstacle just in the nick of time. With the help of Ikuto – who had extended his arm to her in time – she came to a skidding halt after the obstruction, so as to not lose her footing.

At his patronizing look, she crisply said, "I'm fine."

"Just watch your feet." He helped her stand straight. Hand in hand, they began to sprint again, Amu just a ways behind him to see if she could spot any faltering or wounds that were affecting him.

"You know," she said breathlessly. "More than you being worried about me-"

Ikuto was becoming impatient with their ceaseless squabble and her obstinacy. "Amu, there is absolutely nothing wrong with me."

"But–_!_" Amu was made to stop in her traps when Ikuto came to a halt once more and put a finger over her lips in a gesture of silence, his cobalt eyes solemn as they looked into her wide sunbeam-coloured ones.

"Now is not the time to argue. I am _fine_, Amu." His voice suggested finality in their conversation and the girl being spoken to in question frowned, still not convinced. Yet, as much as Amu didn't want to admit it, it was true: Ikuto was perfectly fine, not the slightest bit wobbly from his injuries or even the least unsteady from his loss of blood.

The two kept on running through the green thickets of the forests for a good while, until they thought they had gone far enough as to not be caught by the bandits – if they were being chased, that is – until they came across another clearing much like the valley they had just escaped. Panting heavily from their long run, Amu watched as Ikuto stood silently; taking a sweeping gaze at the panorama of the area, body and mind vigilant for anything. His gaze only sharpened when he whisked his head in the direction of the undergrowth he and Amu had just dashed out from. His fuchsia-haired companion did the same wondering what he could have been looking at through the still bushes and trees – yet only seconds later the rustling of the leaves and the snapping of branches made the both alert, as she went closer to Ikuto. With sharp icy eyes, he shielded her body with his as the rustling increased and the creature came closer.

Eyes wide in wonder of what was approaching she was startled to see that the "creature" turned out to be Kairi.

"K-Kairi?! What are you doing here?" Amu tried to step out from behind Ikuto, but he grasped her wrist tightly and kept himself himself in front of her. "Ikuto?" He said nothing as he stared the boy down with hard, distrusting eyes. Amu's face softened as she tried to soothe his worries. "It's okay, Ikuto. Kairi is a friend. He only wanted to help us." Placing her hands on him, she lowered his arm down gently. But Ikuto's face did not change, body remaining equally as tense. "We can trust him."

Regardless of what she said, Ikuto had a hard time believing it. There was something wrong with this boy. The smell was very much human but it had a sour note in it. Something he couldn't put his finger on. Perhaps, it was the boy's stature, which had a bizarre rigidity to it. Or maybe the flicker of colour in his eyes. There was a barely perceivable jerk in his fingers and something more. Something that he just could not ascertain. '_But what is it?_'

She took a few steps forward, not heeding her companion's protest. "Kairi‒"

"Amu‒" The young man with the teal hair only blushed as they spoke simultaneously. But she wanted to wait for him to speak up again. Finally Ikuto saw it; the twist in the boy's flesh and the lurch of his hand when the sour smell intensified into odour of charred flesh. He wasn't human.

"Amu, get away from that guy!" Amu looked startled at the sudden outburst, she whipped her head back in the direction of Ikuto's panicked eyes. He rushed forward and grabbed her hand but the other man ‒ creature ‒ moved just as quickly.

Before the ochre orbed dancer could figure out what was going on, she was lunged at by Kairi as a sudden explosion made its announcement just behind them. He had safely moved her out of the outburst of massive branches and other debris, until it dawned on the dancer that Ikuto's hand had slipped out of her hand. Ikuto was still trapped in the dust, she realized. Ripping her arm out of Kairi's grip and getting to her feet, Amu dashed into the clouds of dirt. She covered her nose and mouth with her hands; squinting her eyes to keep out the sand swirling about her and to try to find Ikuto.

"Amu!" She turned in the direction of the voice, hoping with all her might it was Ikuto – only to spot Kairi, who, she was guessing, chased after her. He grabbed her hand tighter this time and dragged her out of the disaster, sprinting off with her.

Amu gasped for air, coughing and spitting while she swivelled her head around in a desperate search, coughing wildly. "K-Kairi! I need to go back!" She was sobbing as she continued to struggle and pull herself free. "Let me go, Kairi! Ikuto's still stuck over there!" But he didn't loosen the grip on her hand. Amu was panicking as they got farther and farther away from the explosion and, as a consequence, Ikuto. "I said let go of me! I can't leave him behind!" The girl cried, panting breathlessly all the while. Seeing that he would not listen to her pleas, she forcefully stopped him, jerking him backwards and successfully bringing his run to a stop. She tried to blink the dust out of her eyes, her vision still bleary from the tears. "Please, Kairi. I need your help. I need to find him. I can't leave him behind."

"You know what? It's a shame that you're not aware enough of the fact that you are an Akuma no Hana." Amu froze. The shape she could make out in front of her was Kairi, but the voice whispering was not his. The person tutted, tongue clicking audibly. "That's not good. No matter who it is, you must never let your guard down so easily. Who knows? You may just be taken advantage of."

Amu staggered backwards, retreating as realization dawned on her. "Just who-" her voice broke, unable to finish her question.

This person – this _creature_ – that had pulled her along was definitely **not **Kairi. Her suspicions were only confirmed when it turned around, a malicious smile twisted on its face as it continued to talk to her in its low mocking tone. In the most grotesque of fashions, the skin on the face bubbled and corroded, leaving Amu with nauseous with revulsion and terror. The charred flesh flaked off to reveal red markings.

"I know. It's not a pretty sight at all," he said with a baleful chuckle. "It's always such a gruesome process do this. It's not nearly as easy to mimic human appearances as it is to be in my own human-form. But, sometimes sacrifices must be made." The demon gasped as though it noticed Amu's loathing for the first time. "Oh! You were expecting someone else, weren't you? Let me introduce myself, hm? My name is Gozen and it's nice to be able to see you again. I'm so sorry for deceiving you like this, but in my defence, what can I say? The fragrance that rolls off of you, it corrupts the senses of both humans and us devils alike." The creature licked its lips and jagged teeth. In the broad daylight, its markings – which almost resembled flames – gleamed and flickered much like the real ones, as did the demon's bright red eyes.

It took one step closer to Amu – who took a step back in response, yet minding her feet as they were by the edges of the valley – already crouching at a position to pounce at his newly found prey. Sensing her caution, the demon faked a lunge towards her and instinctively, the girl hopped back; only to find the edge of the cliff give away at her movement and crumble into pieces.

Losing the ground beneath her feet, she swiftly grabbed onto and hung on the tooth coming out of the rocky wall. She looked below her, but wished she never did when she noticed the rough, toothed boulders looming at the bottom. She looked back up to find the monster looming over her with a sinister smile and she gasped out in pain as it stepped on her hand with enough pressure to break the bones of her fingers. She bit her lip, trying to hold back the sobs but nothing could be done about the tears that streamed down her skin. The demon looked at her with dark amusement as he fully transformed himself into the true creature he was: beady red slits for eyes, flashing white fangs, and a mane of long silver hair.

"Really, you don't remember me now do you? What a pity. Curse that demon that gave you his heart! He gave you something so terribly burdensome, did he not?" He squatted down in front of her. Claws as sharp as knives and as long as her entire hand skimmed the skin across her neck and chin. Amu hissed as she felt a small cut bleed on her neck, watching in abhorrence as the demon brought the blood to his thin lips and relished in the taste. "Really, what an unfortunate girl you are. If you give yourself up to me now, I will make it less painful for you." Amu grit her teeth at the things the demon said, her blood boiling in fury.

"Don't," she choked out. "Don't you dare try to make a fool out of me. Thanks to my heart – the demon who leant me his heart – I was able to live." Her thoughts strayed to Ikuto, and flashes of them travelling together crossed her mind. "So what if there are hardships? I'm still proud of myself, this heart, and the demon who gave me this life. You can kill me but you can't change that." This time when he pressed his foot down on her hand, she really did cry out.

"You know you're a beautiful little thing and I'm sure you'll taste exquisite but, your yammering has been a bit on the off-side. Humans are such sentimental bores. Oh well, I'll spare you the wait and not dally any further." He reached his hand out to grasp her neck but was only inches away when an arrow-like object pierced straight through the flesh of the approaching hand. It went through one end of flesh and out the other, blood splattering out briefly.

The silver-haired demon inspected the object with mild surprise, eyes dancing in sinister humour when he saw that it was a small twig resembling an arrow, with its jutted sharpness and a head of leaves. Done examining the item, he casually glanced in the direction of where the arrow came from and the owner of the offending object, not at all staggered when he saw who the owner was: Ikuto.

"Don't touch a single strand of her hair with those filthy hands of yours." Ikuto said coldly. His voice, never raising or straining, echoed loudly of its own accord.

"Look at what we have here. This _does_ bring back memories," he said to himself. "I'll be back for you later after I'm done dealing with some old pests. I like to dine in peace, you know." He flashed a wicked smile. Then, Gozen stood up and turned his back on the still-hanging girl, facing the other demon.

The latter sat in a squatting position, calm yet alert, on the branch of a single dead tree that stood in the rockier land of the valley, slightly outcast from the other, greener trees that were more fortunate than it. Ikuto was in his demon-form and was far enough for Amu to not see him clearly, as she was still dangling down from the ledge of the precipice. "I clearly remember having said that I don't feel like playing around with underlings today, Gozen. Be you a mere human or a Noble Demon."

"Come now, Ikuto," he sneered, warily making his way towards the other demon.

'_Ikuto?_' Amu's eyes widened. '_He's okay!_'

"Is that any way to treat an old friend of yours?" Gozen sneered in its baritone voice. "But other than that, if it's for her, I have no doubt that you'd play with me, right?"

She could only hear the haze of two voices, as the howling wind whistled through her ears; blowing stronger than ever in the dale as it was became increasingly difficult to keep her grip on the rocky outcrop. Her fingers would slip every few seconds and she would have to use her strength to get back that grip. Ikuto as her motivation, she clung on. Amu needed to know he would be safe, even if it cost her life. As powerful as Ikuto was, he did not stand a chance against a demon. But he was still so far away and she couldn't even see him from where she was.

'_I can barely hear him, either._' Amu's heart was aching but she could feel it beating inside of her with its powerful rhythm. Knowing he was there for her made it pound. '_Ikuto, what exactly are you doing?_'

**...::::~ ****Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ**** ~::::...**


	12. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven**

* * *

><p>The sound of multiple footsteps and a range of shouts rang clear through the green walls of the forest, echoing all around. They had heard an explosion, only to look over at the shield of trees and spot bright streams of light that streaked up to the sky – one blue and another red – before a storm of sand covered the entire area in a dusty blanket.<p>

The group of people had protected themselves, holding their ground and closing their eyes against the debris. Only seconds later the sand storm had stopped; the leader of the group had instantly stopped the festivities of the, eyes widening in realization. '_That girl,_' Yukari thought in alarm. '_She escaped that way!_'

"Come on! We're going over there!" She barked.

"How come, boss?"

"Because this is our territory and something is wrong," the auburn haired woman answered cryptically. She looked to Yuu for encouragement and that's just what he did. Before they knew it, they were running through the greeneries; slashing through the thickets that got in their way until they got to the clearing where the explosion had occurred.

It was evident that the disaster had struck in that spot; leaves and branches were scattered about and the way through which they had entered the area had trees that had been snapped in half or even uprooted from the ground.

"Split up and search the area for anything that looks suspicious!" Yukari instructed everyone. They didn't question her commands and only nodded their heads in understanding. "Yuu, take one group and I'll take another group. Kairi, you also-"

"Sister, I'd like to search on my own." Everyone looked at the turquoise eyed teenager in wonder, except for Yuu – who smiled at the boy encouragingly.

"Very well," was all she said. Yukari did not further enquire about his decision. She could sense that he did grow some feelings for the girl and decided that he was an independent person, who did not like to be hindered – which was in an aspect, much like herself.

* * *

><p>"Come now, Ikuto!" Gozen leaped up onto the branch Ikuto stood on. "You brought up such a delicious looking girl! What is your secret technique, painstakingly getting rid of harmful pests?" He spat, taking a sharp swipe straight at the other devil's face. Ikuto dodged it with slick ease as he descended higher up the tree. "If you refuse to tell me, I won't mind! But why not share a bit, you know between 'friends', hm?"<p>

When the silver haired devil neared once more, Ikuto dived down to the ground. '_I need to think of a way to get Amu and get rid of Gozen... fast!_' He thought as said devil followed after him, hot on his heels.

"What's the matter, Ikuto? Getting tired of your old chum already?" Gozen taunted. "Really, how laughable you are. If that girl finds out about your true form she will be quite surprised."

The devils now circled each other, both in stances ready to battle, as Ikuto's eyes kept darting to the spot where Amu dangled off of. He could feel her trembles as she struggled to climb up the stone edge. Gozen took his momentary distraction as an opening to attack, swinging his leg at Ikuto – except this time the navy haired devil wasn't too lucky and was caught in his midsection. He was thrown backwards but held his ground, feet firm as he slid himself to a stop against the gravelly earth.

"I can only envision how she would feel," Gozen continued with his little monologue. "There's no way young Amu would imagine that her dear, beloved saviour _Ikuto_, who's been by her side for as long as she can remember, is the Noble Devil that carved her 'flower'."

'_Damn it,_' Ikuto thought. He was getting no where with Gozen and Amu would fall any minute now, as her arms were starting to get sore and would give away at any time! The other devil caught on with Ikuto's troubles and sneered victoriously. Yet as the two continued to fight, a lad with glasses came into the clearing speedily – no sooner than he had witnessed the two devils had his heart lurched in worry for the girl he was in search of. He heard panting and grunting coming from over the cliff and immediately went to find out what the noise was.

"A-Amu!"

"Ka-Kairi? I-Is tha-at you?" The girl in question shouted against the strong winds of the valley, gritting her teeth in frustration while she tilted her head to catch a glimpse of the boy in question.

"Yes!" He yelled back. "Amu, keep your grip strong, I'm going to get you up!" He looked around for something to pull her up with – a branch or something along those lines – since he knew he didn't have enough strength to pull her up by himself.

"Y-yeah!" Amu managed to say, her nails scrapping against the solid rock of the cliff. '_It's not like I really have a choice since it's either this or die!_'

Kairi rummaged around in search of anything that could pull Amu up when he decided that he had no time to look. On a quick decision, he plucked off his now grimy vest and shirt; tying the two pieces together as tightly as he could manage. "Okay, I'm going to send you down something to hold onto and I'll pull you up!" That being said, Kairi lowered the make-shift rope down, extending his arm down as far as he could so it billowed and dangled against the wind, just above the girl. But, he noticed Amu didn't make a move to grasp it. "Amu? What's wrong?"

"I-I can't!" She cried. "I m-might f-f-fall if I let g-go!"

"You won't fall," he promised vehemently. "I won't let you! I'll pull you up to safety, but you have to trust me, Amu, please!" Taking a shaky breath, Amu reached out a quivering hand and took hold of the end of the cloth, praying that nothing would go wrong as she let go of the ledge with her second hand ‒ her mangled fingers felt like they were disintegrating from the inside ‒ and gripped the cord. Kairi felt the sharp tug of gravity from the rope and steadied himself. "That's it, Amu! Now hold on tight, I'm going to pull you up."

"Quickly, please." She whispered. Amu could feel the tug of the cloth and held her breath as slowly she felt her toes leave the ledge, while her body was being lifted up. She attempted not to look down and instead decided to close her eyes and focus on her now shallow breaths, trying to slow down her breathing: in and out, in and out.

Kairi narrowed his eyes concentration as well as the strength in his muscles, slowly pulling up Amu; his teeth ground from the pressure of his arms and gravity. He looked at Amu, trying to grow his strength by thinking about her but seeing that her only support was him, he felt his arms give away. The dancer girl felt her body jerk downwards and as her stomach lurched, hands clenching the cloth with all her life. Her skin stretched tautly over her knuckles and eyes shot open to look at Kairi, who in turn regained his strength again and continued to pull up the girl over edge.

"My, my, Ikuto. It does seem like you have competition for your growing affections." Gozen cackled as he watched at a distance the boy he had replicated not to long before, try and pull up the Akuma no Hana. "Though, it does not look like you have much to worry about – the human boy is strong but not strong enough." Gozen conjured a flaming whip and lashed it in Ikuto's direction continuously; who unrelentingly dodged the assaults.

Kairi ignored the sounds of the fight behind him and continued with his task at hand. He was so close to getting Amu right now, and to help him, she had been shifting up the rope as well. When she was about an arm's length away from him, Kairi was just able to grasp the dancer's hand.

"I've got you, Amu! I can pull you up all the way now, but hold on to my hand tightly." He could feel his palms become sleek with sweat and it did not make him feel secure. He didn't want the hand in his to slip out because of some silly mistake. The girl with golden eyes listened to him, and held onto both the rope as well as her saviour's hand. "Alright, you're almost h-_AH!_"

Ikuto was late to figure out what was happening: one moment he had been avoiding Gozen's assails and in an instant, he noticed that his opponent had immediately changed targets. Gozen let loose a gigantic flame in the direction of the boy helping Amu and then everything seemed to pass by as a blur.

A force of scorching heat from behind the turquoise haired boy had made him thrust forward as sand and dust littered the insides of his eyes. Kairi tried with all his might to hold onto Amu but the shock had been too great and in that instant he felt the fingers of Amu slip out of his hand. The girl in question had felt Kairi's hand loosen on hers and as desperately as she had tried to hold on, she felt her fingers slacken his grip until they gave away. A strangled scream of some sort had made its way out of Amu's throat and she felt gravity envelope her form, then all at once she felt herself fall.

"AMU!" It was a combination of shouts that she did not hear from the erratic beating of the heart within: strong, familiar thumps reverberated in her chest and at the moment it was all she was aware of. Unbeknownst to her, Amu had halted in midair with a lurch as by a miracle, hands seized her once more. Still, the she felt deaf in her ears given that she could only hear a tiny whistle within her ears while her jumpy insides settled down. Her breathing was heavy and she could make out the loud, hard, and gradually slower thumping of her heart against her ribcage. It was a calming feeling, the steady "thump-thump" ringing in her mind and blocking out chaos she was quite unaware of.

Feeling Amu's terror from her heart and almost seeing her fall to her death, Ikuto had lost all threads of control to his anger. As always, his face was impassive yet his anger purged; his body was spitting electric blue currents from his aura and into the winds, flickering like candle light.

Watching his rival seep with rage, Gozen's face seemed to have twisted into fits of laughter despite the fact that a ferocious Ikuto stood before him. "How could I have missed– oh, I understand completely now! You really have developed feelings for the girl!" He cackled wickedly, his humour – least to say – more dark than pleasant.

"If that's true, what would you do?" Ikuto's voice was laced with contempt, while he watched Gozen continue to laugh darkly.

"Ikuto, you _love_ the human girl whom you leant your _heart_ to?" Fight or no fight, the demon practically doubled over. "Oh, this is rich! Even for you, a devil of the highest status, who holds supremacy among all living creatures, to stoop to such meagre levels!" Gozen sneered at the information, thinking of how much more fun he would have killing the girl now that he had discovered her value beyond her flesh – she was valuable to Ikuto. "How absolutely _precious_!"

"I'm glad you found this so amusing, Gozen. It's good to have a laugh once in a while." Leaping back to the closest tree, Ikuto placed one palm onto its surface and unleashed demonic roots and branches in the direction of the other demon. The latter did not have enough recovery time and found himself entangled within the mess of the snarls, the pressure being overwhelming as his body was being crushed.

"What are you-**_!_**"

"But it's even better to have a laugh before you die." With a single gesture from him, the vines crushed its captive and in a burst of flames, the devil had disintegrated into black ashes and splatters of blood which littered the ground as they fell.

**...::::~ ****Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ**** ~::::...**


	13. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve**

* * *

><p>"Come on, come on! Hurry up!" Yukari bellowed to her men as they sprinted in the direction of disaster – she had seen flashes of colour and heard turbulent sounds in the directions of a near by precipice. She had a good feeling that whatever was happening right now, it was happening <em>there<em> – and it most possibly concerned a certain Devil-girl.

'_This is a demon's territory. They would never hold out on what would be a tasty treat for them. An Akumanoko like her could not pass through here alive, that's for sure._' The tawny-eyed leader could feel her legs burning from the intense run on the unlevelled, rocky ground and even her softly padded khussa dug into her ankles, no doubt forming blisters and swells. Nonetheless, even though she was short of some breath and sweat trickled down her forehead, she continued to trek on. '_I don't know why I'm going so far for a cursed girl, but I owe at least this much._'

"Yukari!" She heard a shout come from behind her, and promptly turned veered her head around to see Yuu stumbling up the higher ground with his group surrounding him. He jerked his chin upward, in the direction of whatever was going on as she nodded her head in silent confirmation.

"Alright," Yukari panted. "We're all going to go together and no one's backing out, am I clear?" Though confused over what the big deal was, they all nodded obediently.

When they were clear over the higher level of ground, the sight that they had met stopped their hearts from beating in that one second. Two devils, visible to their own wide eyes, were coming to blows with one another – a fight like they had never seen before – with powers beyond their own comprehension. What had once probably been a tree filled area was slowly being wiped back as the giant plants died in a variety of ways; pulled out by their roots or burned to ashes or even broken around their middles. The goons silently watched with slacked jaws as the sounds of the battle rang out from somewhere close by. But even with no idea of what was happening, Yukari and Yuu only scanned their eyes over the premises in search of Amu or Kairi or – if they got lucky – both. Hopefully, they were unscathed and alive with the terrifying demons blasting away at each other and it didn't take long for some eyes to finally spot them.

"Hey, Boss!" One of the men finally cried, the boisterous leader turning to glance at him and where his arm was stretched out to. "Look, over the-" But before he could say anything more, Yukari made a mad dash for her brother, who seemed to looming over the edge of the cliff on his knees – his entire back bare – holding onto what seemed like a hand.

'_The girl!_' Her mind barely registered the fact that Yuu and the others seemed to be following right behind her as she darted forward towards her brother. When they were only paces away from the teal haired boy, a flash of heat and light startled them as they saw the blaze scorch Kairi's back.

Without a second thought, Yuu and Yukari both lunged forwards, arms outstretched as they each grabbed the plummeting teens. In turn, the others also reached out for the others, making sure to give all the help they could. It was easy to retrieve Kairi, as he had only swayed forward; however, his back was badly scalded and blistered. Yuu and some of the others gently carried the lad to a safer spot, trying to set him down as smoothly as they could before hastily attempting to mend his wounds.

As for the rest of the group, they were now struggling to draw up the weight of their previous escapee – along with trying to balance their leader so she didn't accidentally tip over as well. Slowly and carefully, they hauled up the limp form of the dancer, placing her near Kairi. Hardly anyone paid any attention to the sounds of the demons in the distance as they hid behind large boulders, some of the goons occasionally trying to peer at the creatures only to be discouraged by the sharp looks given from their leader.

Yukari looked over both of the ragged bodies, slumped over on the rocky face of the ground, unconscious. She used the bits of knowledge Kairi had given her when it came to inspecting a person's health. She had made one of the men get some cold water and made sure to wipe down what part of the bodies she could reach, making sure to check their pulses every few times. She would not be able to burden the responsibility of someone's death. However, the unnaturally fast and strong pulse of the girl unnerved her. It was almost as if she could see the blood pumping in her through the pale skin of her wounded wrists.

Then she remembered, '_This girl is an Akumanoko._' The girl held the heart of a demon – it was bound to be different from a human heart. '_Everything is bound to be different if you're borrowing a demon's lifeforce._'

Staring at the dancer, she realized that there was someone missing. "Oi," she whispered to one of men trying to peer over the boulders again. He snapped to attention. "Where's the girl's companion?"

"Uh, don' know. We didn' see 'im anywhere 'ere." It seemed unlikely that he would have abandoned the girl… had he already been killed by one of the devils? She felt the tips of her fingers turn cold.

"Yukari," She turned to look at Yuu, who looked unnaturally sombre as he tended to Kairi's scorched back. Taking a deep breath to steady her senses, she tried not to direct her gaze to the horrid burn. This was no time to feel at fault – that would get her no where. "Did you see the demons?"

The titian haired woman puckered her brows and frowned deeply at the man in front of her. "You realize that I wasn't focusing on those demons, right?" She hissed, ripping another strip of cloth – the make shift bandages at the moment. "I was a little occupied trying to look for Kairi and the Akumanoko-"

"But that's why you should have paid some attention to them." He whispered hurriedly, meeting her eyes. "One of the demons had the same mark as the dancer. It looks somewhat like that musician you tied up."

Yukari scoffed disbelievingly. "You're not suggesting that that weak musician is this girl's demon or something, right?"

"Well, from what I heard, he was some what intimidating at first, right?"

"No, he was hardly intimidating," she lied through her teeth, her eyes flashing a warning. The old Yuu had wandered off and the new one was quite impudent; while that could be a good thing, at the moment it only made her want to knock some sense back into his skull. "Besides, it was one against many he couldn't have done anything. Not to mention it was hardly any trouble to beat him. He was just another weak kid trying to act strong."

"Even so, where is he right now then?" Yuu pressed on.

"How the hell am I supposed to know," Yukari snapped. As if, she had not realized that already. "Do you think it would be like this if we did know?"

However, Yuu was adamant. "The devil with the same mark is this _girl's devil_ and that is the musician." The sandy haired man said and it was as Yukari was about to bark at him to stop talking nonsense until a shout was heard from the distance.

Out of curiosity, everyone peeked over the boulders this time only to be met by a shock – the blue haired devil had ensnared the other devil in a thick mess of thorny vines. With wide eyes they watched as the thickets squeezed the devil in a vice-like grip until the creature combusted into flames, blood splattering the ground noisily.

They listened with horrified ears as an unfeeling voice as cold as frost seemed to hiss, a sound that bounced off of the valley into menacing echoes. "The fires of Hell await, Gozen."

They all sat frozen in their spots, a chill that rendered them unspeakable piqued the air around them until the silence broke with the sound of deep groan. Eyes flitted down to look at the two unconscious teens, watching as Kairi seemed to stir awake, his hand clutching his head dazedly while he gave another moan of pain and attempted to get up.

"Easy there, Kairi, easy," Yukari said gently, making him lie back down and handing him back the glasses that they had taken off him. "You're pretty burnt up there, so it's going to be painful for you to move around now. Just rest for now and when we get back to the caverns, I'll treat you with our supplies."

"Look on the bright side," Yuu grinned cheerfully. "At least you'll have a manly story to tell all the ladies. Ow!" He yelped as Yukari elbowed him sharply in the ribs.

Her brother only nodded and smiled weakly before looking beside him at the still-comatose dancer, he looked at her anxiously with blurred eyes. "Is Amu okay?"

"She's in a better condition than you are," Yukari sighed. "Hopefully, the girl will wake up soon." And just as she finished saying that, Amu also began to rouse, her lips mumbling incoherent words. Yukari's eyes flashed in worry as the dancer whimpered faintly, tears sliding out of her closed eyes and down the width of her jaw. She curled her body inwards, as if protecting herself. "H-hey, you okay, kid?" Amu mumbled some more. Everyone listened intently, straining to hear the hushed words of the girl before her eyes fluttered open and her voice died down. Looking up with bleary vision, her line of sight slowly became more and more focused. Finally, she woke up with a start, recognizing the people who were surrounding her. "Hey, calm down!" Yukari said as Amu babbled strings of nonsense hysterically.

"Where is he? Where's Ikuto?" The bespectacled woman was rattled by the unexpected outburst as her mouth clamped shut. Small, shaking hands grabbed the front of her vest while desperate golden eyes searched the dark tawny eyes of Yukari. She sobbed when no one answered her. "You can take me and sell me and kill me or anything else you want after but just tell me that he's safe! Please! Tell me that you know where he is! Is he okay?"

"I-I don't know," The older woman felt compelled to answer the girl, but felt guilty when frustration sparked her eyes and Amu let go of Yukari's clothes. She ground her teeth together as she wracked her mind for what had happened to Ikuto. All she could remember was the explosion and then being separated from him by the demon.

'_Gozen. Of course, I was tricked again._' Her face contorted in the agonizing ache of her heart. Her entire body hunched over, shaking with the force of her silent crying. She felt something flutter onto her shoulders and her wounded fingers felt the dry, wilting petals of the wild China rose before letting them go. Through her aggravation, she didn't notice Kairi get up weakly and inch near her until he placed a hand on her shoulder, startling her.

"Amu, I'm sure we can‒"

"Don't touch her." The sudden sharp voice made Kairi jump with a jolt, drawing his hand away from Amu as if her skin licked his hand like fire.

In an instant her body snapped itself and ignored the pain that shot up in bolts all over her because that didn't matter right then. "Ikuto…" The others around her moved back at the intimidating figure of what they now knew was the demon of the dancer. They looked at the girl warily; from the uplifted look on her face, it was evident she was not aware.

Amu watched the man who strode towards her, his clothes more tattered and hair in a state of disorder. He was safe. He was unharmed. She breathed out shakily in relief. His face looked blunt and uncaring, but she saw how weary and fretful his cobalt eyes looked. Nevertheless, as quick as Amu's relief had come, it was quickly washed away at the thought of Gozen and her frequent misfortune. She was always the reason Ikuto found himself in trouble or got hurt. She stretched out a trembling hand towards him and he rushed over to her instantly.

"Ikuto," she managed to choke out.

He swept a lock of hair away from her face, staring at her intently. "I'm right here. Where does it hurt, Amu?" He treated her with a gentleness the others did not think he possessed. Amu looked down at the withering petals once more and slowly, took the flower in her hair out. "Did something happen with it?" Ikuto didn't name the demon yet he watched as her shoulders drooped and she bit down on her bottom lip to keep it from quivering. She shook her rosy head. He feared the worst, wondering if she knew about what he was; who he was; was she disgusted; did she hate him?

"Nothing," she whispered sorrowfully. Her hand closed tightly around the hideous flower and dropped back down to her side limply. She let her eyes close. She couldn't face Ikuto. Yet even with her eyelids shut tight, she saw the image of Gozen behind them. "It would have been great if _nothing_ had happened."

'_The reason that he had helped me… was so he could get close to me._' The sore pang was still there and even though she knew that it was not actually Kairi – knowing that she was "helped" for her heart was sad. Everyone who approached her was put into danger, always getting hurt because of her. No one saw her as a human or even close to it. '_I am only needed to die._'

"I'm sorry." No one could see her face, as her head was tilted down and her long rosy hair made a curtain for her countenance but the regret and sadness that she emitted was unquestionable. "I'm so sorry."

As she was hurting, so was he. He could feel the twinges of the heart she possessed and he felt her feelings of repentance wash over him time after time, like a reoccurring tidal wave. It was as Ikuto watched the girl in stillness that he remembered Gozen's words again: "_You really have developed feelings for the human girl!_" At that moment he was unable to respond, keeping his answer nonaligned for his own benefit but all the while, he felt himself waver. "_Ikuto, you love the human girl whom you lent your **heart** to?_"

It echoed in his ears. "_You love the human girl._" Rolling and rumbling like thunder, a prelude to a storm that was soon to come.

"_You love the_ _human girl._" He could sniff out the faint trace of salt-water tears beyond her eyelashes.

"…_Whom you lent your heart to?_" Her pain clawed the empty spot of his own chest and finally he got his answer.

Amu was surprised when she felt Ikuto's hands on the side of her face and she flushed at the warmth she felt with just the slight gesture. She looked up to see him lean close to her and bury his fingers into her hair, placing a soft kiss on the side of her face.

'_It is because of him. It is because Ikuto is here for me, beside me, and always gives me warmth._' She thought serenely. '_I can stand up and continue to walk forward._'

"Forgive me, Amu." He murmured in a soft undertone and Amu lovingly gazed at him, wrapping him in an embrace. Instantly, Ikuto could feel her heart swell up with warmth and comfort, it made him become consumed with guilt and shame. She trusted him so much and he was merely another demon, no different from Gozen. He was just waiting to kill her.

"You have no reason to apologize. You're safe and sound, Ikuto. That's all that matters to me. I'm happy with you." Holding her small body in his arms, he squeezed her tightly feeling the remorse gnaw mercilessly inside of him. "As long as you are here, I will always be fine."

'_Forgive me for being a monster, for being a devil and having no control over myself._' Out of all existence, why did he have to be given life?_ 'Forgive me for having to kill you and take back what should always have been yours._' Why could such a heart not be rightfully hers from the beginning? '_And more than anything else, I am sorry that I fell in love with you._'

**...::::~ ****Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ**** ~::::...**


	14. Chapter 13

**Chapter Thirteen…**

It was agonizing. And he didn't mean the burn on his back. What hurt was watching the girl that he loved obliquely confess her affections for another man, especially since she had no idea that the man wanted nothing more than to rip her heart out in the end – literally. Kairi had known somewhere along the beginning that the navy haired musician was, in reality, the devil that would take back his heart from the dancer; which was why he wanted to help her. He knew that Amu was a cheerful girl but any simpleton could figure out that she did not want her life to end – she was always so hopeful and pure. To want to snatch that away, it was criminal.

'_Doesn't that make me worse, not being able to do anything about it?_' His thoughts were on the tip of his tongue and Kairi wanted to call the devil out. Tell Amu the truth about what exactly she was blindly trusting; the monster she _loved_. The paradoxes of the situation were a bitter reality and proved that life was such a merciless game, with fate controlling them around on strings like lifeless puppets. Oh, the death-defying irony.

The boy with glasses resented that devil more than anyone or anything in this world. 'Ikuto' she had called him. Just by her tone of voice, a person could tell that she loved him more than a plain brotherly figure and he seemed more than just a "friend". A bond between 'flower' and 'stem' was believable, however "friendship" was out of question. The truth, once more, churned the pits of his stomach to know that he had no chance with her.

But that was the least of anyone's worries – what was the most unbelievable he would never have thought that the demon was also capable of returning those feelings. It was just simply impossible! Kairi felt that he was just protecting Amu for the end when he could devour her, but he saw the raw emotion in what was supposed to be cold and unsympathetic eyes. There was no prospect for either of them – they both would lose in the end.

'_He's going to break her heart and take away her life._' He felt taken aback by how close they were; it stung to see them touch each other so intimately. So casually. '_He's a __**devil**__. She's a human girl._' It wasn't fair. Kairi could feel his antagonism escalate and his conscious roared for him to expose the devil. Yukari and Yuu noticed the change of colour in the young lad's face; when his eyes flashed with hurt and vengeance, the two of them put a hand on his shoulders and slowly he simmered down. They could see he was extremely hurt.

'_We can't meddle in their affairs,_' Yukari told herself. The messy haired man beside her noticed her stiff jaw and could see that her feelings had softened; he knew that internally she hoped the best for the dancer girl and the devil because that was he felt as well. Now it was just up to Kairi to sort his feelings out.

"Kairi," the young trainee pharmacist looked up from glasses to see the beautiful pinkette smiling at him. "Thank you, for helping me." Even with her shabby attire and scarred skin, Amu was radiant in his eyes. "I'm sorry for the trouble I caused you."

Kairi blushed deeply, his face feeling uncomfortably hot and nodded rigidly before stammering back the thanks and took the apology. He saw his older sister's lips turn up in a poorly concealed smirk and all around him there were little coughs and murmurs about him having a "kid crush" – oh, he was in for a lot of teasing soon.

Ikuto also felt uncomfortable with how things were. It was apparent that all of these people were aware of his true form and he wasn't sure what he would do if any of them revealed his identity to Amu. Not to mention, he certainly didn't like the way the kid acted around Amu and his possessive streak made him stand as close to her as possible – making sure no one was able to make any mistake over his claim.

"A-And thank you all as well." She said meekly, looking at all of the faces in front of her bashfully. "I'm sorry for everything that's happened, I never meant for you all to get involved like this." Amu bowed her head in apology and saw that Ikuto was merely standing beside her silently. She elbowed him in the gut and motioned for him to do the same.

He muttered a hesitant 'thanks' and didn't bother himself to say any form of apology – they were the ones at fault for kidnapping Amu in the first place – but only did so because he knew the sunny eyed girl with him would become temperamental and peevish if he didn't.

"Erm, you too." Yukari murmured clumsily, fidgeting with her glasses as she looked at the travelling duo awkwardly. Amu looked at the ginger haired woman with confusion, making her sigh as she realized she would actually have to say it out loud. She snarled at Yuu briefly for looking so infuriatingly smug. "Sorry for, um, _that_ from before and thanks, I guess. For, well… just thanks."

"Don't worry, Miss Himamori." Amu sighed when the overly-cheerful yet clumsy Yuu got her name wrong again, she didn't feel like correcting him again. "She's trying her best-_ugh_!" Yukari jabbed him gruffly on his back. She definitely wasn't very used to the circumstance of expressing any gratitude to any "merchandise", let alone "ex-merchandise".

After a lot of deliberation on what more he could say, Kairi finally decided to ask, "W-Where will you be going next?"

The question made Amu stop to ponder for a while but was unable to come up with any answer. "I… I'm not really sure, we don't really think ahead about that sort of thing." She thought as she looked at Ikuto, of course, he decided to stay silent. She shook her head at his antics before turning to the group watching her intently with a brilliant, dreamy smile. "Wherever the wind takes us I guess."

…**::::x-X-x::::…**

"Hold still, will you, Kairi?" His sisterly figure growled at him. It was hard not to move – of course he was quite used to bearing with pain and getting up even when he was hurting. On the other hand, the burns he had received earlier were like nothing comparable to the nicks and bumps he had gotten while growing up.

From there on, everything relapsed to a cosy silence – with the exception of the squabbling going on just paces away from them. The rowdy bunches of men were deciding on who would do the cleaning about the caverns and who would go with Yukari to the next town's port to do some business. Yuu was not helping in the least as he wavered from side to side, playfully shouting arguments with one side to the next – a stupid thing to do when everyone was aware that he was already busy handling something two towns over and wouldn't have joined either of the groups for real _labour_ anyway.

Of course, Yukari was thankful that he helped keep the attention off of her while she spoke privately to her brother; nevertheless, she knew that they would kindly not barrage into the conversation and had enough sense to know that it was personal for the young lad.

Yukari sympathized with her young man in front of her – she couldn't imagine how hard it was for him to have to watch as he just stepped down and let a devil lead away the girl he had come to like. He was unable to do nothing but watch from the side with guarded eyes, not at all trusting the creature. Then again, it was especially hard for her too; after she had ordered her goons to thrash him earlier and even toyed around with the two.

Kairi had always been successful at achieving what he wanted, whenever he put his mind to it. He was used to being a winner and conquering whatever challenge he faced – that was how a lowly child like him had even gotten to the enviable point of becoming a trainee pharmacist. Or becoming the toughest in the group, only second to his older sister. They were all great accomplishments. Yet, as they all watched as the two left hand in hand and Kairi had never felt like he had lost so heavily. He remembered his last words to the duo before they had left…

"_Will we ever see each other again... Amu?_" He had noticed how taken aback her expression was; after all, it wasn't long until the end for her. Even when she answered with a smiling "_Maybe_", the young boy could feel the hesitation of not knowing what the future held in store for herself.

"_You have to take care of her._" He didn't know what had possessed him to actually address the devil, and so brusquely at that. Obviously, it was while Amu was distracted by the others and did not take heed of their exchange. "_She deserves to be happy and __live__. Only a monster would take such things away from an innocent life._"

But what baffled him the most was the response he got from the monster – expecting either disregard or possibly even a punch from Ikuto for being so bold: "_I know._ _I'm a terrible beast._" Kairi had not anticipated the vulnerability Ikuto had shown in that instant, unsympathetic cobalt eyes displaying a mixture of pain, remorse and self-loathing. It left the human boy at a loss for words and a sense of disgust at himself for feeling even a moment's worth of pity for a **devil**. It wasn't Ikuto who was dying; it wasn't him suffering; it wasn't him who was losing everything he desired; Amu was the one who was in the most pain… right?

'_No, she isn't_.' It was a war between himself and his own conscious.

"AARGH!" He shouted out loud, ruffling his hair around wildly, seeming very out of breath after the spell of frustration he had vented. In his distraction, he only then noticed that the entire camp had gone quiet because of him; meeting his eyes with frozen stares. Yukari seemed to look at him dubiously, her eyes looking at her brother with open thoughts about whether she should have him checked out by a good doctor – possibly even an herbal-psychologist or, if they wanted to save a bit more money, a gypsy. "Erm… That was just- I didn't mean to do that." Kairi gave a cough as he cautiously sat back down in front of Yukari, who still held the dripping herbs in her hand with guarded eyes. "Pardon my lack of control over my actions." He bowed his head even though she sat behind him.

"And here I thought you were the only one who wasn't a weakling in our group of pathetic little boys. Did it hurt that much?" Yukari asked wryly, smirking as she continued to apply the mash of therapeutic herbs. She ruffled his hair when he didn't answer and sat silently, fidgeting with his glasses discomfited by his outburst.

"Of course not," he mumbled uneasily. The silent atmosphere settled down and the sounds of the men goofing off in the distance could be heard again.

"**OI!**" Yukari yelled this time, making Kairi lurch in surprise. "What the hell do you think you all are doing, eh? I thought I already told all of you what to do while I'm over here? I don't recall telling you to leisurely goofing around! Why the hell are you still staring at my face, huh? Something funny?" She bellowed to the now scurrying men, running about to get to their posts. Kairi snorted when three of them ended up colliding in a clash of heads before tumbling down into a stony area, only to get up howling in pain and hopping off in a roar of swearing. "When I let you all eat lizards and cactus water, we'll see what the jokes about!"

Yuu watched as the hilarity ensued, laughing as he tried to support himself by a boulder, guffawing hysterically to the point where he could no longer hold himself up and began to roll around on the ground dramatically.

"What the hell do you think you're laughing at Yuu? Get up off the ground, no one's washing your clothes here except for you! I ain't your servant!" The ginger-haired woman snapped. "And watch your mouth, you lousy idiots! Don't make me get over there and whip you all back into shape because that'll be the least of what you'll have to worry about! You better have at least half of your work done when I get there!"

"Yes, sir!" Yuu saluted exaggeratedly, smiling widely. But his chuckles turned into nervous laughter when Yukari snarled at him. "I mean, ma'am! Miss? Mistress? Hmm… that sounds nice."

"YUU!" Her entire face flushed a deep crimson that rivalled her hair colour; seeing her look so livid yet at the same time flustered, it had to be the first time in anyone's life. Even Kairi blushed at the words, breaking into a fit of coughs – he would rather eat sand slugs for an entire day then be stuck in the middle of the duo's flirting!

"I was just kidding and I'm going! I'm going!" He chuckled before heading off with a wave.

Kairi didn't say anything as he heard dark mutters coming from behind him and Yukari settled down again. It was after a long silence that Yukari whispered to him, giving his shoulder a firm squeeze. "I'm proud of you, you know, for everything you did today. It was difficult for you but even so, well done little brother."

No more words needed to be exchanged for him to know what she meant. He didn't bother commenting or rather he didn't have the voice to speak in the softest of tones. It had been hard on him but Kairi had clenched his teeth and moved on. He was and always had been a fighter, that she was positive of but today's events had only strengthened that aspect about him. He was going to go far in life and one day, hopefully soon, he would find the person that would truly see that and more in him. She was sure of it.

…**::::x-X-x::::…**

'_Tonight, I'll still pray to the flowers, the sun, the moon and to the heavens above. I'll continue to travel and I'll never give up hope, so that tender heat from the flames of life that resides within my chest won't disappear._' It had been a long time since the sun had set and the moon was above their heads, a beautiful crescent shape in the desert sky that twinkled with stars looking like crystal droplets.

"We'll stay here for the night," He looked at her directly into her eyes and Amu nodded slowly, putting her things down on the forest floor. "It's best if we build a fire and just rest here until dawn comes around."

She knew that Ikuto was aware she wanted to at least make it across to another village but he wanted her to rest, even though she already told him she was fine. Naturally, he wasn't going to comply to her wishes tonight and was going to have her rest no matter what the reasons; the stiffness of his jaws and how firm his voice had been was all she needed to know but from his eyes, she could see how worried he was. Protective as always.

They set up camp, having gotten back their possessions and some travel items from the thugs they had met up with earlier – something that surprised her as found the dancer in their better books. Amu laid out two blankets onto grassy, woodland patch and added a few more on top to cushion them. Ikuto had already collected numerous branches from nearby and piled them up before the two set up a nice roaring fire with a match from Amu's travel bundle. She put the lit-out match back into its package, saving it for later use.

She put her hands in front of the heat, making sure not to get too close so the flames did not lick her bare skin. It was big enough to last them through the entire night in the chill of the desert, so not having too many blankets wouldn't be a problem. Slowly she felt the warmth spread to her toes and she gave a content sigh. Ikuto continued to quietly prod at the sticks into the flames, having a pile of them near the heat so it would be easy to add them in as the others burned.

Amu looked at the jewel ring on her finger and gave it a gentle stroke, watching as Yoru appeared with a little bit of smoke and a loud "Poof!" Eyes wide with surprise, she watched his furry blue face, lit up by the red-orange flames, look around while his pupils quickly adjusted to the dark around them. He purred, mewled and stretched before floating over to his master and let himself fall onto her soft lap before purring into her stomach.

She giggled while he said in a muffled voice, "You left me in there for so long, master. I missed you and at least you're okay now." Amu smiled and scratched the little kitten behind the ears, ignoring Ikuto while he looked at the little creature with narrowed eyes. "I'm sorry I couldn't do anything to help you." He mewled guiltily, ears flattening on his head in shame.

Amu held Yoru in her arms and gave him a comforting hug, "You did wonderfully, Yoru. I was so happy when you helped me back there, so thank you." He purred happily and rubbed his face into her neck, tickling her, before she slowly hummed him to sleep in her arms. Hearing him snore and mumble about sardines in his sleep made her giggle softly, while she laid him down beside her. "He's so cute."

Ikuto snorted. "Yeah, about as cute as a cactus is," he muttered blandly, tending the fire with a large branch. Amu gave him a seething look and then lay down as well, moving the thin blanket over herself. Ikuto then moved down beside her; perched on his elbow, he looked down peevishly at the genie between them.

"He helped us, you know. You should have thanked him," she whispered. The young dancer reached out and stroked Ikuto's faintly warm cheek, her own cheeks also softly flushed by the heat of the fire. Stillness fell on them for a minute as the words sunk in, but Ikuto was never one to keep completely quiet – at least around Amu.

"Pathetic is an understatement if I have to describe him," He grunted curtly yet Amu had heard the subtle distinction in his voice. He had toned down his cruel resistance and she even noticed how he had just ever so slightly pulled the blankets up on Yoru as Ikuto pretended to "shift" up into a more comfortable stance. He gave a quiet 'tsk' and averted his gaze from the tender smile on the face of the girl in front of him.

'_He's so adorable when he's embarrassed._' She continued to gently caress his face, gazing at his face. He looked so ethereal as his features were illuminated by both the flickering flames and the glow of the moon. The darkness played with her eyes and it felt like she saw two sides of him in that instance; half of his face open to the unadulterated light coming from the fire. However, the mysterious luminescence of the moon, on the other half, played his features in enticingly haphazard ways; his dark eyes looking dangerous but at the same time beckoning for her to come closer. '_No, that's ridiculous_._ I'm so worn-out I'm imagining things._'

She snapped out of her daze when she felt Ikuto's hand on her face, his warmed up fingers softly running down the contours of her face, leaving a tingling in their presence. "I-I was so scared I had lost you," Amu stuttered hesitantly. Her voice was so quiet; the sound could just barely be picked up from the crackle of the flames. They were as close as they could possibly be without completely flattening the life out of Yoru – who still lay snoozing peacefully by his master's stomach, blissfully unaware.

Ikuto's jaw was set tightly, his face looking bleak but he craned his neck to give Amu one final kiss on head, running his fingers through her soft, rosy hair. He had almost lost _her_. "Good night," he murmured while he watched her eyes flutter, a sleepy smile on her face while she whispered back the same.

"You should get some rest, too." She yawned, clutching his hand. Ikuto kissed the palm delicately and let the small fingers find home in his hands for the night.

"Yeah."

Before closing her eyes, Amu looked up for a few seconds, eyes searching for the pale light of the moon. It didn't take long against the black velvet sky and she quickly finished her nightly request to the heavens. '_So, that I can be with Ikuto and stay with him because I need him – from now and forever on. So please, grant my prayers. As selfish and shameless as I am, please let me be with him._' And she let her eyes succumb to her drowsiness but the ghost of a smile remained on her lips.

She could have sworn she heard it, a breezy whisper that seemed to carry with the wind: "_I love you_."

'_Please let me live. For him._'

**...::::x-X-x::::...**

**A/N: **Be nice to me guys, be nice. I know! I'm alive! (Yes, so I edited the author's note after reading some of the reviews ^^;). First of all, I'd just like to say thank you so much - this is to ALL those who have read, reviewed and supported me for this story. Writing TDF gives me an amazing feeling knowing that you all are cheering me on! Thank you so much! I'm sorry if I don't always answer to your reviews but you can't imagine how I loud I squeal! (Seriously. I squeal.)

Secondly: My goodness you all are amazing! I'm so glad you don't all want to burn me at a stake! Thank you! Just as a note, the next chapter will be a little side story about one of the characters just to lighten things up a bit ;) But the next official-official chapter... I am not sure at the moment -.-" BUT NOT TO WORRY! I am working on it! :D


	15. Chapter 13: Extra Side-Story

**A/N: **Thank you all so much for your amazing and thoughtful reviews! I actually didn't expect to get so many and it was such a pleasant surprise! I would crush you all in Gena-bear hugs if I could but all I can do is just say thanks times a billion! Anyways, this is just a small side-story I felt like doing and it was so cute in the original _Hanatsukihime_ I just couldn't leave it out! ^_^ Leave me some feedback or a comment if you wish. And if you prefer the hate, go for it ;) Just knowing the time that you took to type it makes me feel great and the thought is very much appreciated! Now on with the story, enjoy! :)

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><p><strong>Chapter Thirteen and a Half: Our Genie, Yoru<strong>

He was small. Yet very, very powerful – you just couldn't tell. He was the genie that lived inside the ring and his name was Yoru. It was his duty to grant the wishes of those who rubbed the ring and summoned him. However, he wasn't allowed to spoil his masters because if humans got whatever they wanted without working for it, they would become very lazy. That was why his magic for a wish dissipated after about five minutes but on the other hand, this was the reason our little genie was so frequently rejected by his masters.

However, things were different now. His home – the ring – belonged to a new master. A brilliant travelling dancer with fuchsia-coloured hair and vivacious amber eyes, much like his own, and her name was Amu. She was very beautiful, kind-hearted, and affectionate and Yoru really loved her; it was the reason he put up with her less-kind yet kind-of fun(?) to be around companion, Ikuto. Everyday was another playful day; another adventure and it was never, ever boring. But, one day, Yoru decided to take a float after lunch and incidentally he met up with someone he hadn't met in quite some time.

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"You over there! Peasant!" The small cat-eared genie looked over his head and gave out a surprised mewl, his fur standing on its end.

"Nya? Kiseki? What're you doing over here?" He looked over his brother, holding in bouts of laughter at the exaggerated red cape and crown "his royal highness" dressed up in. For goodness sakes, he's been wearing the costume since he was fifty years old (they were at least three hundred now, right?) when the Hotoris had first found them and those tights made him look like a _girl_!

"That's Elder Brother King Kiseki to you, filthy mongrel!" Yoru snorted at his brother's unchanging antics.

"Nya, nya. Sure, sure. Whatever you say, nya." Yawning widely and then posing as if he was lying down, while in mid-float. The lavender-haired genie looked at Yoru with his mouth agape in offence.

"Ungrateful and disrespectful cretin! I – the magnificent King, Kiseki – grace you – a lowly animal – with my presence and you dare to talk back to me so rudely!"

Yoru silently mimicked his overly pompous and immodest brother, behind his back of course, while Kiseki continued to prattle on about his "Kingliness". When he had finally finished with his rambling, he turned around to face the kitten-genie, who now floated innocently while humming a tune to himself aimlessly, thinking of many inappropriate curses he could have spewed – all of which he had newly learned from his master's companion, of course. Not that he would ever say them, he didn't want his master to be upset or disappointed in him!

"Nya… so, what are you here for again?" He asked, giving his paws lazy little licks.

"Insolent cat," Kiseki muttered under his breath, cringing at the horrid sight. Saliva did not belong on one's body – especially saliva that smelled like disgusting sardines! Nonetheless, the murmurs didn't escape Yoru's keen ears but the kitten decided to not rile up his brother if he wanted his question answered. "I came here to give my useless brother a pep talk."

"Nya?" Yoru cocked his head to the side in confusion, making the genie with the red cape roll his eyes.

"Let's face it. You can't do anything! Which is why you're always thrown away and your masters change so frequently; you're magical powers are – sad to say – weaker than the power of a desert ant!" Kiseki shouted while pointing an accusingly; that reminded him immensely of Amu when she was mad at Ikuto for doing or saying something perverted.

"But… aren't desert ants infinitely stronger than most bugs, nya?"

"Quiet, lowly peasant! Do not sass the king! Did you think your almighty elder brother, the Genie King, would not know of your record for being thrown away!"

'_Nyaa! How does he know about that? I never told him! And he's praising himself for it, too, nya…_' Yoru thought miserably as he cowered under his elder brother's narcissistic behaviour and miserably true accusations. '_And "Genie King"? Really?_'

"It was the Fates that have brought us to the palace of my master! They knew of how ambitious and great and royal _**I**_ was! And they took pity on you and let you follow behind me. But discovering your uselessness, they decided that you needed someone with greatness to show you the way!" he said proudly, as he smiled broadly at nothing.

Yoru merely blinked a few times before opening his mouth to answer hesitantly, "…Amu?"

Kiseki's face crumpled and he glared at his younger brother. "Of course not! It's me, you dimwitted cat! And with your level of magic, it won't be long until your current master abandons you as well."

"Nyaa?" Yoru floated to where his brother was and glowered at him ferociously, a lone tear pricking the corner of one of his sharp eyes. "Amu would never do that to me! I'm super useful to her, nya! I gave her swords before and I made it rain golden coins for her and I always keep her company! How do you like it now, nya?"

Kiseki scoffed at the words of his insistent and truly pathetic brother. Obviously, Yoru was still very naïve and incapable of taking on the role of a true genie but he continued to look at him fiercely, as if he could read the other genie's thoughts. '_No matter the decades that pass, he is still such a child._'

Yoru hissed with rage before animatedly yelling, "Fine! I'll show **you**, nya! If you're insulting me like that, I'll show you just how useful I am to my master because you obviously have no idea how much she loves me and needs me, nya!" And with that being said, Yoru stormily floated off to prove his elder brother wrong.

…**::::x-X-x::::…**

"You want to grant my wish?" Amu looked at her little kittenish-genie peculiarly, shifting her small basket of laundry to one side. He was normally energetic, but it was usually for extra yarn from when she sewed or if she were making fish for dinner. "Hmm. Well, I don't have any in particular; at least right now." She added hastily looking at his forlorn expression.

"Anything is fine, nya! Shall I make it rain money again? Or, or shall I conjure up some magnificent jewels for you, nya?" He bounced in the air, in front of her, excitedly. Amu chuckled, thinking how adorable her little genie was and ruffled his fur before scratching him behind the ears affectionately. Yoru purred delightedly.

"Alright then. I'll think about what I want and then tell you, okay?" She smiled at him warmly before turning back to her chores, humming a tune all the while.

Yoru's ears sagged down as he pouted at his master, who was faced the other way. He had already predicted it would be like this, but decided to give it a shot either way. After all, his master was an incredibly kind-hearted person who was never selfish and never really had any desires for herself. He thought about it for a few more seconds before he got another idea. If Amu didn't wish for anything then he could just go to…

"I don't need you to grant my wish."

"Nyaa! But, why not?" The little genie whined as he looked up to the face of the devil, Ikuto – speaking in both a literal and figurative sense.

"Rather than asking you, it's faster to just do it myself." The navy-eyed musician said bluntly.

"_Nya!_"

"Stop clinging to me or I'll mince you," Ikuto growled in a low voice.

Yoru felt like his hope had just been popped with one of Amu's sewing pins. Of course no one would expect anything from magic that would disappear in five minutes, especially Ikuto. He didn't have to turn around to know that from behind the boulder that sat a few meters away, Kiseki was looking at his predicament with a smirk on his face. He could already hear the arrogant blabbering in his ear.

"Nya. At this rate, my honour will disappear faster than the food Amu makes, nya. Except it won't disappear into me…" That's when Yoru finally noticed it; there was a devil that slowly crawling near Amu, who was busy hanging the laundry to air out, ready to pounce.

'_Yes! This is my chance to prove myself, nya! If I defeat that thing here, nya…_' Yoru envisioned Amu's reaction; he could already hear her thanking him for being so brave and reliable. Then, his older brother would definitely have a different opinion of him and take back what he had said before. '_Moreover, it's just a small devil that looks like even I could handle, nya!_' Yoru pumped his fists excitedly, ready to do his heroic deed. '_Alright, nya! It's time for me to show my power!_'

But before he could do anything, Ikuto had suddenly appeared and grabbed the tiny creature up by the scuff of its neck, it yelped in soon as he had done so, he hurled the thing at a lightening fast speed, way above their heads and into the sky; making the devil look like a tiny comet of some sort. Finally, Amu noticed Ikuto's presence behind her.

"Oh, is something wrong, Ikuto?" Said person looked at her for a couple seconds before plopping down on the ground and leaning against the tree, with his legs stretched out in front of him and hands behind his head.

"Nope, don't mind me Strawberry. I'm just enjoying the nice view." He smirked up at her.

Amu's face twisted into that of irritation and anger; and so began their war. The two were so busy arguing – or at least in Amu's case, since Ikuto only smirked and made snarky comments – they didn't notice Yoru. The little genie was floating on the spot, dumbfounded by the turn of events; but as he watched the two quarrel, he soon became sad. Ears sagging down, he turned around and drifted away, sluggishly and silently. He should have known as much.

Ikuto was _always_ the one protecting Amu when she was in any sort of trouble; what's more, all of the situations in which Yoru thought he had given Amu protection, could have been done just as easily by him if he felt like it.

Considering the devil, he would probably have done it more suavely and effortlessly. Ikuto was the highest rank of devil you could come across. He was the highest level of magical being known to all; especially when compared to a being a good-for-nothing genie such as himself. And even as a genie, Yoru was an oddity. Sure there were common genie-cats, but ones with **blue** fur? Never.

'_In other words, nya, as long as Ikuto is with her, Amu doesn't need me at all…_' Small tears formed in his eyes as Yoru hovered to his brother's hiding spot, behind a large boulder near the stream and a flock of trees. As his brother hovered towards him, Yoru's misery only increased.

"_You're so weak! You can't be used at all!_"

"_You're no where near the magical skills of your brother! The genie of the lamp is amazing compared to a useless prat like you!_"

"_You good-for-nothing runt, can't you get anything right? I don't need you! Get lost! Shoo!_"

The voices of his preceding masters rang through his mind and the genie-cat mewled pitifully, putting his hands over his ears in a futile attempt to make the voices disappear. Kiseki looked at him helplessly; being able to do nothing but look at the shrunken and forlorn figure of his usually energetic-to-the-point-of-being-annoying brother.

As his tears fell, the Yoru quickly wiped them away with the back of his hand; the last thing he wanted was for his older brother to see how pathetic he was. Kiseki stretched out a hand to comfort him but then pulled back not knowing what to do; he never intended for Yoru to become so depressed and had only meant well, thinking that it would also be a way to see his brother. In the end, he sighed and conjured up his magical carpet.

"Alright, it's about time for me to go back, my master is probably waiting for me." He cleared his throat and looked at Yoru expectantly, heaving another sigh when he did nothing. "Well, don't be too upset." With those final words, the genie of the lamp climbed on and soared off; leaving behind the helpless genie-cat by himself. Yoru peeked out from behind his hands to see the flash of a red cloak before that also faded away into the distance.

'_Why doesn't he just poof himself back to the palace? Stupid show-off._' He sniffled dejectedly, rubbing the tears from his eyes. "I can't even make my master happy, nya. What am I the genie of the ring for anyway, nya?" Yoru sobbed out loud for a few seconds before he heard the sound of footsteps and stopped immediately. Again, he had wiped away all traces of tears when the owner of the footsteps came to where he was sitting.

"Yoru?" He floated up at the sound of the familiar voice and his name, only to come head-to-head with the flushed and anxious face of his master. "Yoru! Thank goodness I found you! I was so worried when you didn't come back, even though it's already time for dinner." She giggled lightly. "You know, I made fish today, especially for you and Ikuto; since I know how much you two enjoy fish."

'_Fish!_' The kitten's face lit up at the words before becoming sad once more. '_No. I can't. I must work for it! I am not useless._' Oddly enough, he did a silly wriggly-floating motion to move away from the girl in front of him. It looked like he was trying to run and swim in the air at the same time.

Amu blinked at the strange sight. "Yoru?"

"I-I-I don't need dinner." Yoru stammered as he continued to wriggle farther away.

"What in the world are you talking about, Yoru?" She laughed as she reached out for him again, only to frown when he floated further away. "Of course you need dinner if want to have energy besides I made us something wonderful today."

"Only those who are helpful and do work can should eat, nya." He mumbled sadly.

"Huh? What are you saying? I'll be very troubled if you're not around." At that his ears perked up in surprise and he turned around to face her.

"Nyaa?" Frozen in shock, the genie of the ring looked at his master with wide, disbelieving eyes. "Troubled? Y-you will?"

"Of course. I cooked way too much and it's a waste if the food's left behind or goes bad. Besides, Ikuto doesn't eat a lot anyways and it's more fun when you're there." The sunny eyed dancer smiled radiantly. "When I eat alone with Ikuto, he's always being the pervert he is and I don't know what to do. Not only that, he never gives me a single word of praise or thanks me for my hard work!"

"Does…" Amu stopped her complaining to look at her genie – who now looked at her with eager, expectant eyes. "Does that mean… I'm useful, nya?"

"Eh?" Amu said totally confused at the sudden change in topic.

"Does that mean I outdo I-Ikuto, nya?" He now looked at Amu with twinkling eyes and a hopeful face.

'_Wait a second, how did it turn out like this?_' Amu thought as she sweated under the pressure of Yoru's anticipation.

"A-Am I necessary to you, Amu, nya?" Yoru pleaded, half sobbing his question. Amu's eyes widened in apprehension of his strange behaviour before they softened into a warm gaze.

"Of course you're necessary to me, Yoru. **You** are the one and only special little genie I have, my sweet little kitten. You're my special healing medicine and a part of my life that always keeps me going." Amu beamed brightly. "Not only that, it's so nice and warm when I fall asleep holding you tightly because you're so squishy and comfortable – you're my very special and adorable little kitten. What makes you even more special is that beautiful blue fur you have, I adore it and you."

Yoru only half listened to the rest of what Amu said, seeing as her first few words were the only ones echoing around in his mind. Instantly, to the dancer's surprise, he broke out into tears (and some snot), tackling Amu in big kitten-hug. She stumbled backwards, but regained her balance and giggled; happy that he was back to normal and also because he was nuzzling her.

"Y-Yoru, it's ticklish!" She squealed between laughs.

But the joyfully babbling genie wasn't listening to her. "You're kind and special and pretty and gentle and soft and fluffy too, master! Especially over here, nya!" But his last few words were muffled by his cuddling her chest. The young dancer only continued to giggle as she scratched him behind the ears, making him purr into her blissfully. "You're the best master ever!"

_And just like that, Yoru learned the importance of his existence for the first time – and at a level where his magic no longer mattered. So, he vowed solemnly in his heart, that he would forever protect his gentle and benevolent master. And his elder brother? Well, let's just say that Kiseki watched over him from the shadows…_

"Do your best, Yoru!" The genie of the lamp watched as the girl cuddled his brother happily, from behind a tree that was not to far away from the two. "So, one day I can say that you are somewhat useful with your magic, as well… younger cat-brother!" Of course, Yoru would never be as astounding as he was but he could at least try. Besides, his younger brother happened to have the one thing Kiseki, unfortunately, did **not** have…

"_Especially over here, nya!_"

"It must be so nice to have a female master!" Kiseki clenched his fist, envious that his brother had one luxury that he himself had never had and imagined himself in the kitten's place. "Soft and fluffy," he thought pensively.

"… What's soft and fluffy?" Ikuto asked in a dark voice, also unnoticeable in the shadows. From behind, eyes filled with murderous intent looked down at Kiseki and for the first time his "royal highness" found himself kneeling before another. But that, good friends, is another story.

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	16. Chapter 14

****A/N: ****Well, would you look at that! I'm still not dead! :D Sorry, bad joke, I know. But, after so long, yes! I do have an update! Not to mention, just before my exam period! Joy to the world! ^_^ Before I start, I want to thank everyone for all the kind reviews you've gifted to me. To know that people have taken the time to send me these comments really made me happy. So, again, thanks. Now, without further ado, I present to you this chapter!

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**Chapter Fourteen…**

"Come one and come all, nya! Watch her! Look at her, a beautiful dancer and one of the most gorgeous girls of her time, nya!" A loud shout rang out, calling out to passers by; the people of the small yet bustling town they were anchored in for the time being. "You can pay after you've watched the entire performance, nya! She's the princess that colours the desert, the exotic gem between the sand!"

"Oi." For only a moment, the shouting came to a pause and the figure of a young boy turned around to face the intimidating azure eyes of the lute player.

"What is it, Ikuto, nya?" Sharp eyes looked at him without blinking, and words seemed to cling to the walls of his throat, refusing to be spoken. "Ah…"

"What are you doing out here, you little runt?" He asked in a low voice, continuing to strum the strings of his instrument, watching Amu from the corner of his eye. Of course the question had nothing to do with his physical appearance; Yoru was disguised as an ordinary human boy who seemingly accompanied the dancer, so no one other than his master and her companion were knowledgeable about his masquerade. "Why are you advertising her so explicitly? You're aware of what can happen if we aren't careful."

Ikuto was the master of disguises, however, it was in that second that Yoru felt the wariness and veiled fear the devil concealed within his aloof nature. After the last experience, Yoru was careful not to bring up the incident that happened merely weeks ago. The memory was still freshly embedded into all of their minds and speaking about the near-death experience with Gozen was taboo.

Straightening himself out, Yoru was able to look at the devil without worrying about himself; right now, he was concerned about Amu. "I know, nya. But I made sure to check the entire town before and it doesn't seem anyone knows anything about 'that'."

If Ikuto found it unexpected or was surprised by what the genie told him, he didn't show it. "If anything should happen, I'm letting you know ahead of time that Amu and I will be having roast _chicken_ tonight."

"Roast chicken? Really, nya?" Yoru mewled excitedly, almost daring to salivate before noticing the glower of the demon in front of him.

"Yes. _Chicken_. Though I doubt you'd be there to enjoy it as much as I would." As if he felt the restrained threat throttle him already, his hands jumped to his neck in fear and Yoru stumbled off in a babble of 'yes' and 'of course' and 'just as you wish'. It had been a long time since Ikuto had found the pleasure of bossing around the weak genie – usually attempting to pacify Amu by simply trying to be "civil" with it. However, when she wasn't aware of it, their tale took a completely different turn.

"You don't want to miss it, nya! Watch the performance that steals the gaze of peasants and princes alike," Yoru yelled, running toward his master as fast as his little legs could take him – looking over his should all the while at Ikuto's glower. He ran around Amu in circles, while she spun on her toes gracefully. "The beautiful Amu is here to bring you dances that can make flowers bloom!"

The crowd cheered and applauded loudly when Amu scooped the child-disguised Yoru into her arms and spun him around in her arms, making him squeal giddily with flailing arms. Ikuto looked over with pursed lips when she let the genie down, Yoru tittering on his toes from a small dizzy spell as his vision swam. He collected the money from the very entertained crowd with a big grin. The humans ruffled his brown hair affectionately while he strolled about them with the colour-faded, patchwork bag. Yoru watched his master bow graciously with a proud grin; however, his grin became blatant snickers when Amu forcefully pulled Ikuto from the shadows. In seconds, his sniggering turned into loud guffawing when his very persuasive master made the devil give a bow – or rather a curt nod to the audience, albeit it was still reluctant.

Slowly, as the show came to an end, the crowd of people dispersed to go about their own business and Yoru went back to Amu; he shook the bag around and watched her eyes sparkle at the jubilant sound of somewhat muffled clinging.

"This is great! We'll have a feast tonight!" She cheered, her face splitting in a grin from ear to ear. Her elated words became dampened by the cover of the robe Ikuto tugged over her head and pulled down to cover the euphoric dancer. But even Amu's stifled words held her euphoria, making Ikuto's mouth turn up at the corners.

"Can we have fish for dinner, nya?" Amu's head popped out of the end of her dark wrap, and Ikuto upturned lips turned down into a frown – the genie had stolen his usual request after a bountiful performance. "And can it be seasoned with those yummy spices you use master, nya? Nya, can we even have lots and lots of dessert, nya?"

"Of course," She said with a gentle smile; the genie certainly had taken after her. Amu looked at Ikuto's stoic face and giggled, seeing the pout in his eyes. She fixed the wrappings of his robe around his neck, smoothing them down while her eyes laughed at him. "I'll make a lot of yummy fish for all of us and dessert as well." Pulling up her hood, she handed the genie two coins to buy whatever wished.

"Master Amu is the best master _ever_, nya!" Yoru mewled, wrapping his new arms around the human. The three of them walked around the village and to different stalls, shopping for food and other supplies.

While looking at some apples, Amu remembered something and turned to Yoru with a sceptically arched eyebrow. "Yoru, what were you saying today to the audience?"

"Nya?" The genie looked up at her with wide golden-caramel irises, different from his usual bright yellow eyes, and cheeks full from his spending. Amu crouched down to his height and wiped off the remnants of a cream pastry that stuck to sides of his face, brushing off the crumbles that had fallen onto his garments.

"Well, you certainly were enthusiastic today," she chirped, picking him up into her arms while they continued to look around. "Though I have to admit, the things you said were terribly embarrassing."

Yoru looked astonished, his mouth agape indignantly. "What are you saying, nya? It was just right to attract customers! Look at how much money we earned, master, nya!" Amu looked dubious – although it was true that they had received much attention from the town. "Besides, I wasn't lying, nya. My old master, that Prince Tadase, did like you, nya," Yoru shrugged in a matter of fact tone.

Ikuto's expressionless gaze perked up at the mention of the kiddy Prince and Amu seemed to kindle a fire on her own face, making the devil turn his head away when she started stammering incoherently. "B-But–you see that was only–th-that doesn't–what if somebody knew about the mark and something happened to us again," she finished pathetically.

"Nya, don't worry, master!" The genie beamed, hopping down onto the ground from his master's arms. "As long as they don't know the meaning of the Akuma no Hana mark, nothing will ever happen, nya. At any rate, just in case you got worried, nya, I made sure to check the entire town and no one here knows anything about it." Noticing another stall of exotic pet fishes and birds, Yoru scampered off by himself, completely oblivious of Ikuto glaring after him.

"I hope he's right," Amu sighed in an undertone, leaning on the man beside her. Ikuto looked at the girl's drained face, drooping in her anxiety. He felt the fear radiating from within her as she recalled what had happened several weeks ago. The incident with Gozen still made her feel disconcerted, giving her nightmares at a time on some nights.

It was those dark, new moon nights where she woke up in a groggy and dishevelled state; whimpering and panting at the haunting reminiscence of the devil that had revealed the beginning of her fate as a sacrifice, owned by the devil – Ikuto, himself. Yet, with the twist that fate played with the duo, it was in her devil's arms she found shelter; warmth; love. It was her own safe haven away from her recurring distress. Every instance that it would occur, Ikuto would be by her side, arms open and reassuring, while she clambered into them cosily; he whispered her name – and only her name – over and over again, in the confines of her ear.

"Come on," Ikuto said, breaking the girl out of her reverie. "You still have a few more things you need to get." She nodded slowly, grateful that he did not bring up her train of thought and walked on.

They shopped around; Amu looked at the quality of different foods, asking for Ikuto's opinion, but only receiving an apathetic shrug in response. She scowled at him, making him grin wolfishly in return. At the end of their escapade in the market for what they needed, Amu dragged her companion around at her own leisurely pace to look at – in his opinion – ridiculous and redundant items.

"Ikuto!"

He turned his attention back to the dancer, expecting her to lash out at him for not caring much about the small, over-priced things that awed her, "Hm."

"You almost knocked over that child over there," Amu said, lips pursed and hands on her hips. "At least pay attention to your surroundings." At least he was correct about her scolding him, but he disagreed with her sentiment; he was paying strict attention for anything that may be harmful towards his flower.

"Whatever you say, Strawberry," he drawled, eyes gleaming with wicked mocking. His satisfaction bloomed when she scowled at him, childishly poking her tongue at him before dragging him off by the arm again.

Amu came to a stop at a jewellery stand; her golden eyes glittered as she scrutinized the striking jewels and exotic feathers that decorated it. However, what caught her eyes the most were a simple pair of jewellery that she was quite familiar with already: a pair of jagged fang earrings. They seemed to be have made from the fangs of a large animal, held by intricately sculpted metal weavings with a silver hook. Amu glimpsed back at Ikuto, as his own very similar pair weaved in and out of sight by his long, dark hair.

She bought him the set with her first earnings as a young dancer and they were quite old now, slightly roughened through time although in very polished condition. He wore them everyday, as Amu noted now; her stomach fluttering with pride at the fact. But she turned away frowning; they were almost twelve years old by now, more or less. Amu looked down at the fangs again, fingering them lightly.

'_It's been a long time since I've actually bought Ikuto a real present_,' she mused. The last item she bought for him was a new pair of khussas and that had been several months ago.

"See anything you like, Miss?" Amu was startled at the address, and she looked up to see a young man grinning at her from behind the stall. She could only assume he was the owner of the stall.

Amu smiled back timidly, retracting her hand from the earrings. "Well, I suppose. I'm not sure whether to get them or-"

"Ah, don't worry about those little thoughts in your head! Your mind always has something or the other to find fault with!" The man's green-ivy irises twinkled, as if laughing festively, his voice matching them. "Follow whatever your heart tells you, that's what matters the most." He winked at Amu and she smiled more openly, nodding her head at the outlook.

Suddenly, she felt Ikuto's hand at her waist, pulling her closer to his side; she looked up at him, her brows quirking up in query. She tensed faintly, asking him, "Is everything alright, Ikuto?"

"Fine," he replied monotonously, eyeing the human in front of him none too pleasantly. Vaguely, Ikuto's eyes narrowed when the shopkeeper laughed loudly once more.

"Not to worry, my friend," The man grinned cheekily. He ran a hair through his messy cinnamon hair, complementing the faint scent of spice that rolled off of him – though it was debateable if that came from the spice vendor next to the jewellery stall. He looked between the two in amusement, "I'm a married man myself, so I'm not about to go wife-napping others' women. So, nothing to worry about, good man."

Amu squeaked at the sudden assumption, her cheeks glowing a dark crimson hue as she avoided Ikuto's piercing gaze. '_Married? What in the world does he mean by me and Ikuto __**married**__?_' She felt herself swallow thickly, the idea floating in her mind pensively. Amu imagined Ikuto holding her close – nothing unfamiliar to her – yet his face inched nearer and nearer, almost about to…

She shook the idea away, her eyes reflecting her open horror; yet it terrified Amu most how her mind seemed to consider and yield to the entire notion of what the vendor had said. Amu could feel the intensity of his glaring smirk; only he would grin at something like that, as if it were some kind of joke! She punched his arm roughly when he began to stroke her waist in massaging circles with his thumb, as his hand tightly held onto her still.

"I–him–W-we're not married," Amu babbled as she tried, to no avail, scoot away from Ikuto. She hissed furiously at him, "Let me go."

"Oh, that's not what that grin tells me," the man pointed out, laughing at the reaction he got from the couple. Amu swatted away her companion's nearing face, flushing – it reminded her of what she had previously thought of. But soon, she had forgotten about Ikuto's antics, as her attention was diverted to something else going on a few stalls down from where she stood. Her forehead creased, brows knitting together, when she saw a handful of men surrounding a petite woman; they were pulling forcefully at her hand and it was obvious she was struggling to free herself.

"Come on, don't struggle! We're just trying to help you because you didn't look so good," one of them sighed heavily.

"Yeah, we can help you out. Trust us," the hefty male heaving at the woman's arm sneered, the false innocence in his voice contradicting his brute actions.

"I'm fine," the quiet voice of the hooded woman spoke. Amu could only make out parts of her face but the woman did look unnaturally pale and sick. The dancer turned away from Ikuto, who seeing her line of vision, rushed after Amu. Even the vendor, seeing the scuffle with the woman, dashed after the two frantically.

Impulsively as ever, the pink haired girl pushed past the surrounding horde of males and grabbed arm of the man latched to the woman. "Don't be aggressive and just let her go. She obviously does not wish to go anywhere with the likes of you."

'_Stupid girl!_' Ikuto thought as he went to the dancer's side, making his way through the scrawny and pathetic bodies of affronted men. "Amu, don-"

"Who's the kid?" One snapped, pushing himself in front of Ikuto.

"It's that dancer girl. The one who was performing in the middle of the bazaar just now, a few minutes ago," another growled. "We might as well sell her off as well then. Get big money if we auction her off at some slave market."

They made a grab for her hand as well, but Amu would not let go of the ill woman with her; not giving up without her own fight, Amu kicked the first man who attempted to grab her. Howling as he clutched the spot where he had been lashed out at, the girl scratched another man in the face. By then, the jewellery store's vendor had shown up into the fray as well.

"Let go of the girls!" Even he took the turn to swing at the man holding the girls' arms. "Who the hell do you think you people are, trying to kidnap and sell them off? How can you call yourselves men?"

The man leaped back, avoiding the merchant's punch, and took out his own blade – a dagger, that was about half his arm's length. "Those who have nothing to do with this should step back, meaning you, you meddling fool!" Swishing the blade about, the store owner stood in front of the two girls protectively leaning back to avoid the cutting edge from grazing him. Still, it cut through his robe and tunic, leaving a large and gapping tear down the front while the robe swished backwards.

Looking back at the man, Amu searched for any signs of a wound or blood but found none; however, she did a double take back to the man's chest, eyes widening with what she saw. On his chest, a mark was tattooed across the span of his torso. Her mouth went slack as she took in the details of the mark; large and blackened, elaborately shaped like a blooming rose. It was very similar to Amu's own tattoo: the symbol of an Akuma no Hana, the Devil's marking of a borrowed heart.

The vendor stepped forward with a dark snarl, teeth bared while he grit out menacingly, "I think I do have something to do with this, since this woman was trying to save my wife." The man bearing the dagger scoffed, spitting at the ground repulsively.

"Piece of trash, don't try and show off-" However his words were cut short as he received a bruising and sound blow to his right cheek, making him topple to the ground in a small cloud of dirt. Coughing wildly, he looked up to his assaulter – whose foot now rested not-so-gently on the side of his face.

"If you don't wish to become a corpse in the next fifteen seconds," Ikuto threatened with sinister eyes, his countenance vicious. "I suggest you get out of my sight and out of this town. Immediately. Or I can promise you will fail to see the light of day for the rest of eternity."

…**::::x-X-x::::…**

"You didn't have to bloody them up that badly, Ikuto!" Amu reprimanded, wiping off the traces of dirt around his cheeks with her robe. Her lips went up into a snarl when he simply gave her his usual condescending smirk.

"I don't break my promises, Strawberry," he drawled, pulling her closer next to him. "They should be thankful you're nice enough to have stopped it." She punched his arm once more that day, but turned around when she heard the sound of footsteps and saw their host entering the room with a tray of tea and pastries. Her previous agitation faded away.

"Ah, thank you very much, sir. You're being extremely generous by even treating us to tea, but really, all this isn't necessary." Amu said hastily, as he set the tray down in front of them. Yoru didn't seem to heed his master's words, digging into the delicious looking pastries contentedly. "Besides you have to tend to your shop and-"

"I thought I told you it was no trouble?" He said teasingly. "Please, call me Kukai, there's no need for formalities. Besides, that isn't my store. I was only filling in for the man who owns it while he did some chores and whatnot. I actually work as a handicraftsman in this town and sell my things to the merchants who sell them to others. The details are a complete bore so I won't waste time on them."

"If you say so," Amu sighed demurely, reluctantly taking the tea that Kukai offered her.

"I don't mind, nya!" Yoru chirped; bits of the pastry flying out of his over-stuffed mouth. Frosting smeared his cheeks and Amu wiped away the mess with the corner of her robe, just as she had before. She giggled as he chomped happily into another pastry.

"You've had so much sugar today. Slow down or you might find yourself with painful craters rotting out your teeth," She chided kindly, while her genie grinned, mouth brimming with food.

"I thought you said you weren't married?" He grinned slyly, eye brows wiggling suggestively. "Where'd this little guy pop out of?"

Amu looked scandalized, face steaming. Yoru choked on his pastry, his coughing hiding his bout of laughter at the situation he had no idea had occurred when he was not present. "I–He–We're not–Yoru isn't my ch-_child_!"

Ikuto scoffed, muttering audibly under his breath, "As if I'd produce an idiot like that."

"Yeah!" Yoru agreed, having finally swallowed up his snack. He reached out for his third one before realizing what his master's companion had said, turning to him indignantly. "Hey! I am not an idiot!" Kukai merely chuckled.

"You should come out here and thank them too, Utau! Don't worry they don't bite." He laughed boisterously, his head turning back to the doorway. He winked at the dancer, "She's a little shy around strangers." Amu glanced at the woman standing there and her eyes sparkled as the woman stepped forward.

'_She's beautiful,_' Amu thought with a soft sigh. The woman, Utau, had golden-blonde hair that fell to her knees, swishing around with every step she took. Her eyes were a violet amethyst; true to the name of the very jewel, they glistened under her sweeping eyelashes. She also had rosy cheeks above a smooth complexion; her lips were pulled ever so slightly at the corners at Amu's blatant awe.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Utau," Amu extended politely, her voice soft as she sat before such an elegant presence. The woman only gave a small nod in the dancer's direction; her steadfast gaze seemed to unnerve Amu, as she fidgeted with the bottom of her rosy locks, flustered.

"Actually, her body became ill a little around a year ago. Come sit with us, love," Utau sat down beside Kukai, the man cradling her next to him lovingly. His gaze towards his wife was full of adoration. "She seemed to be in good health today, so I forced her out today and let her stroll around while I briefly went to help out that vendor. But it was my fault for taking her out in her condition and leaving her alone." His voice was gloomy, while he gave his wife an apologetic and aching smile.

Amu looked between them with a tender smile; Ikuto had been staring through the entire situation very sharply. He had more than just a suspicion for something bad. He had has eyes fixed on the couple in front of him, staring coldly and unsympathetically at the two. Rising to his feet, he pulled up Amu beside him and started dragging her off.

Startled by the sudden mood change, Amu stumbled along with her own protests while Yoru scrambled along behind them. "Ikuto? What in the world-"

"We are leaving this town right now," He snapped without looking back at the dancer and avoiding the looks of their hosts. "There is nothing more we have to do here."

"But it's already very late." Amu pulled him to a stop as she whipped her head to look at Utau, who spoke for the first time since their arrival. "It wouldn't be safe to go out at this time, and I'm sure you will not find it unpleasant in our company."

Kukai smiled nervously, putting a hand to her shoulder, "You shouldn't force them, Utau." Amu looked at Ikuto pleadingly, not understanding why he had suddenly become so bitter around such generous people, but he did not face her in the least and continued dragging her along.

"I decline. Akuma no Hana have enough enemies of their own, yet we have two over here. Nothing but trouble will come out of this," He gnashed out pitilessly, not worried about hurting any person's feelings –especially the duo serving them. "We don't know if something dangerous is lurking around and this house definitely isn't an exception."

"Wait, they're only–Ikuto, will you please listen to what I have to say!" Amu shouted. Turning his face around forcefully, her hands gripped the side of his head tightly. The devil looked at her quietly, face blank even after her outburst – but his eyes betrayed his trepidation. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "But–It's just–I want to talk some more with Kukai. This… This is the first time I've met another Akuma no Hana, another person with a mark. Someone like _me_. To me, he's the only one of my kind, so I'm sorry, even though I know you don't want to stay. Please don't be upset, but understand why I have to do this."

Ikuto narrowed his eyes and for the first time ever, Amu felt herself cower in his presence as a dark shadow overwhelmed half of his face, the other half just barely illuminated by the sliver of the sun's final glare for the day. Still, she held her ground, her eyes imploring him.

"You know that we can't. It's dangerous here…"

…**::::x-X-x::::…**

Yoru sat in the silence of the room, unnerved by the think tension of the atmosphere. The thickness could rival that of a chunky stew from the mucky sludge found after river floods. It was enough to make him suffocate in his human skin – choking because of silence.

He watched wordlessly; the words hung onto his tongue in the silence, waiting for a chance to leap out but were intimidated. Instead, they stood at the tip, waiting and watching. Amu sat in the corner of the dimly lit room, her face illuminated sadly by the candles that flickered wistfully next to her. Her skin steamed with the freshness of her wash and she sat alone, on a lush mattress of silk and feathers. The platform squished down at her weight and his forlorn master sat lost in thought, playing with the damp curls that fell down from her head in a corona around her.

The genie stared down at his human fingers, wiggling them experimentally before he lifted his head in vigilance. The faint sound of bare feet prodded against polished porcelain tiles, the hushed sound nearing the candle-lit chamber leisurely; almost cautiously.

Knowing who it was, the genie looked to his master, waiting for her response when the walker would show up. Yoru watched her eyes widen up and flicker down to her clasped hands in a haste. Her chest heaved with noiseless pants, the symbol etched on her skin moving in sync; her golden hues betrayed the erratic thump of her heart.

Dark russet eyes travelled to the reason of his master's discomposure, following the man as he ambled around to the opposite side of the room and settled a neat stack of blankets down by their travelling satchels. In his other hand, he held an oil lamp that cast an eerie glow to the pale contours of his human face. The flame of the lamp flitted like a tiny, bright whip from his movements.

It was here that the words sitting in the cavern of the genie's mouth longed to make their presence known; to butcher this awkwardly sculpted and disquieting quiet; to annihilate the noiselessness and the lifelessness. Finally, Yoru decided he would say something to slice the awkward quiet of the usually bickering duo and opened his mouth to-

"Your hair's wet," Amu blurted, slowly looking up at Ikuto. He tilted his head just a fraction in her direction, looking at her from the corner of his eyes – he almost seemed wary.

"Hm?"

"Y-Your hair, it's still wet." Her voice dropped down a notch, barely above a whisper, "It's dripping onto your tunic. If you sleep like that, you'll end up catching a cold." Reaching behind her, she brought out a downy cloth and held it up in the air. Her eyes never left his, beckoning him to take the fluffy towel.

Ikuto turned around and walked over to her, slowly; stepping onto the mattress, his feet sunk into the cushiony edge. To her surprise – and happiness, too – Ikuto knelt down until he sat on his knees in front of her. She could make out the fresh musk of Ikuto from how close they sat; the scent of morning seemed to assault her nose in the dim of night. It was a scent as indescribable and unique as the man sitting before her, dark eyes boring through her as if they could make their gaze through her skin.

They watched each other for a moment until finally Ikuto tipped his head forward, near Amu; trickles of water were absorbed into the fabric of the soft pallet, creating dark spots when they dripped. '_D-Does he want me to...?_'

As Amu reached her hands out to his head – still holding the feathery towel – Yoru had concluded that he would also go to sleep, then. However, he would be resting in the ring. He was aware that they had much to discuss and they weren't very attentive of him at the moment anyway. Switching back to his true form – not even the measly "poof!" of his transformation had distracted the couple – he let himself descend to his lair, still watching Amu and Ikuto without a word.

'_Maybe if Ikuto's nice to her, just maybe, he'll get his first kiss from master Amu,_' the genie mused dryly. Yoru faded from that quiet, candle-lit chamber and into his own slumber, '_If master even wants to, that is_._ I wonder how the Prince would react if he saw that._'

**…::::x-X-x::::…**


End file.
